InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Patchwork Family ❯ Meeting the Crew, and Bad News ( Chapter 4 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Humans and demons together in one group? What? Things are going alright until bad news brings everything to a halt for Kagome, who inadvertently brings some bad news of her own for the Wardens.

Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Supernatural / Romance / Psychological / Drama / Action | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 07.06.2014 | Updated On: 05.18.2016 | Pages: 10 | Words: 7.1K | Visits: 706 | Status: Completed

A/N: All Inuyasha characters and references belong to the creator of Inuyasha, Rumiko Takahashi and published by Shogakukan. Any other characters are more than likely my own creation. If I borrow directly from another story I’ll do my best to make sure I give credit where credit is due.

***

The next morning Inuyasha checked on Kagome periodically, but this time she slept for hours without stirring. Hopefully this was a sign she felt safe enough that she could rest. A little voice in his head whispered that it could be a bad thing if she had a concussion, but he didn’t think that was the case.

Around 2 p.m. he woke her up to drink some canned chicken noodle soup. She sipped and chewed slowly, sitting up in bed while he settled on a chair next to her. “I called Vin,” he told her. “The medic I mentioned last night. He said he’ll swing by when he gets back into town. Sango should be here soon with some clothes.”

When Kagome looked surprised he smirked and asked, “you didn’t want to keep wearing my stuff did you?” She blushed deeply and shrugged, shaking her head. Her reaction made him feel… something… he couldn’t say for sure what; maybe pleased? He wasn’t certain why. “Maybe when you’re more up to it she can take you shopping for some things of your own.”

Kagome bit her lip and flipped back to a page in her notebook, pointing at the words. “I have no money.” Inuyasha just shook his head. “I don’t think Sango will care. You want to stop her, be my guest. If there’s shopping involved she’s best categorized up there with hurricanes and typhoons. Ayame’s even worse.” Kagome just sighed and finished her soup. She looked a little flushed and he frowned. That frown deepened when she flinched as he lay a hand on her forehead. “You’re pretty warm. How do you feel?”

She shrugged and waved a hand in her ‘so-so’ gesture, before waving a hand at her face to indicate she was warm. Inuyasha got up and went over to open the window, leaving the blinds cracked halfway to let fresh air flow into the room.

Just then they both heard the front door open and close and Kagome looked quickly to Inuyasha. He only finished pulling the blinds down, unconcerned, and announced, “it’s just Sango.”

Light, quick footsteps came down the hallway and a young woman appeared. She looked just a little older and a few inches taller than Kagome, with long brown hair and bright pink eye makeup. She strode in with a duffle bag under one arm and knocked on the door frame. “Hi! I’m Sango. Miroku told me what happened. How are you?”

Kagome pulled herself up to sit straighter in bed and grabbed her notepad. Miroku must have told Sango the girl couldn’t talk because she didn’t bat an eye when Kagome held up her note. ‘I’m Kagome, and I’m feeling much better. Thanks for lending me your clothes, I’m sorry to put you out.’ In truth Kagome wasn’t at all certain she felt better yet, but she was hardly going to greet someone new with that information, and somehow she didn’t want Inuyasha to know it either. He was doing so much for her and she’d yet to understand why.

Sango shook her head and set the bag on the chair Inuyasha had recently vacated. “It’s no problem. I have more clothes than I know what to do with. I think Miroku was relieved to see clothes going out the door instead of coming in. Inuyasha said you needed some of everything. I brought you a pile of t-shirts, socks, a few pairs of yoga pants and a pair of jeans. I didn’t know what size you were so I just picked up some new underthings on my way over and tossed them in. Let me know if they don’t work and I’ll get you something else.”

Sango looked her up and down for a moment, assessing her with a professional eye. “You’re small; my things are going to be a loose on you but they should work for now.” Inuyasha crossed his arms, standing at the foot of the bed. “She could stand to put on a little weight. It’ll be fine.”

“I also tossed in the basic toiletries,” Sango continued. “Inuyasha isn’t making an ass of himself is he? Is he taking good care of you?”

Kagome nodded, smiling in silent laughter at the look on Inuyasha’s face as he muttered, “the crap I put up with...” Sango rolled her eyes and spoke with good humored sarcasm. “Right, you’re so hard done by… most of the time you bring it on yourself.”

Inuyasha scowled. “I do not.” The expression looked so comical on the demon that it just made Kagome want to laugh.

Sango just rolled her eyes again. “Anyway, I have to go pick up the kids. Sorry to rush in and out on you,” she said to Kagome. “I’ll stop by later when there’s more time to chat.” Kagome waved goodbye and Sango left again. The experience was somewhat like being caught in a friendly whirlwind.

Kagome gingerly hauled herself up on the crutches. Inuyasha looked perplexed and moved to help her get into the duffel bag. She pulled out a stack of clean clothing and tried to figure out how to carry everything and use the crutches. Inuyasha just took them from her hands and gestured for her to go ahead of him. She opened her mouth as if to argue but closed it again, realizing she couldn’t say anything-- and even if she could, there was nothing to say. She couldn’t manage it all by herself. She hated that but had to accept that it was what it was.

She gimped down the hall into the bathroom and Inuyasha set the clothes on the counter, then handed her a towel and washcloth out of the linen closet. “You shouldn’t get your leg wet,” he warned. “Just take a sponge bath for now.”

Kagome blushed and nodded, taking the towels and setting them on the counter, closing the door gently behind her. Inuyasha let out a breath, trying to keep the image of Kagome taking a sponge bath out of his mind. He hoped she’d be in there a while for him to work on that. The last thing he wanted was for her to see the results of such a mental picture. She was skittish enough without him walking around with an obvious hard-on. He snorted in annoyance; he wasn’t normally so easily distracted. Maybe it had been too long since he’d gotten laid but he didn’t care for being that intimate with someone casually. Yet somehow it had taken all of one minute with the idea of her in his bathroom half naked to make him hard as a rock.

He sat at his desk to go over some paperwork for the garage, listening in case she needed help and trying desperately to think un-arousing thoughts.

After about twenty minutes he heard the door open and she came out wearing a pair of loose black yoga pants and a white lacrosse t-shirt Sango had used since high school. She looked much better but her hair was still a mess. “If you like,” he offered, “we can wash your hair in the sink, or you can wait until this evening and maybe Sango or Rosie could come over and help you.”

She stood, looking indecisive. He gave her a reassuring grin. “If you want to do it now, it’s no skin off my nose. I’m just looking at shipping manifests.” He wrinkled his nose and she smiled a little, biting her lip before she nodded once. Inuyasha came back from the bathroom with a bottle of two-in-one shampoo-conditioner, and a fresh towel.

Kagome followed into the kitchen and he set the things down next to the sink, which was situated almost in the corner, in a long section of counter that faced the living room. She watched curiously as he moved everything off the counter and gave it a quick wipe down before he turned back to her. “I’m just going to pick you up and set you on the counter. You can lay down with your head over the sink. Sound like a plan?”

She looked at him in surprise and nodded. He was pleased to find that this time she didn’t flinch; and there was little nervousness in her scent as he placed her crutches to the side and carefully picked her up. She lay back on the counter, wincing at the pull on the wound in her side. He supported her shoulders as she lay back, knowing her core muscles would be weak. She looked up at him with raised eyebrows. Upside down, the curious expression was comical and he grinned as he explained. “I got hurt bad enough a few times that I couldn’t shower right away. The last time, this is how Rosie did it. It worked out pretty well, except I had to manage the climb onto the counter myself.”

Kagome smiled at the mental image and her chest moved in a silent chuckle. He turned on the water in the other side of the sink and let it run until it was warm. With a large cup he rinsed her hair until it was damp. He put a little shampoo in his palm and began to gently massage it into her hair. He rubbed her scalp in careful circles, mindful of both his claws and the tender bumps on her head. Kagome closed her eyes and he felt her relax. Tense muscles loosened and she released a small sigh.

He didn’t say anything, just worked the lather through her long, thick black hair. Finally, he rinsed the soap out, shut the water off and squeezed out the excess water. Once he helped her sit up on the counter he rubbed her hair a little with the towel before she took it from him to finish up herself, hoarsely whispering the words, “thank you.”

Inuyasha nodded once. “Feel better?” He tried not to think about how she looked with her hair all damp and messy like this. The sight was putting him right back at square one. She nodded vigorously and gave him a careful smile.

They heard voices approaching the apartment then, and the front door swung open, admitting a whole group of people before it was closed. Kagome sat on the counter, a little stunned. “You’re okay,” he said, patting her knee briefly; then he directed his words at the small crowd suddenly standing in his kitchen. “Apparently no one around here knocks anymore.”

There were several men, a woman and a few kids. Two of these she remembered from yesterday, Miroku and Gabriel. A third man was tall and blue eyed with dark brown hair. His ears were pointed and there was a glint of fangs when he shot her a wolfish grin. “So, this is the biscuit the dog’s been hiding?” The man took a few steps forward and put his hands on his hips, giving Kagome an appraising look from head to toe.

Inuyasha sensed her tension and smelled the mild panic creeping into her scent again when the man came closer. Before she could reign in her feelings, she saw the man’s nostrils flare a little and Inuyasha stepped between the two with a warning rumble low in his chest.

Kagome clutched the towel in her lap, while her other hand reached behind her and inconspicuously grabbed the ceramic soap dish from the corner of the sink. She watched the two of them closely, nerves jumping until a red headed woman-- definitely human, pushed her way forward and punched Koga in the shoulder. “Mind your manners. Don’t be a creep.”

Koga looked down at the woman and smirked in the face of her reprimand. “Whatever.” She glared up at him and crossed her arms. “You’re just lucky I’m not Sango. She’d put you on your ass for talking to a woman that way.”

The door had just opened again and Kagome saw Sango shoulder her way forward, asking, “who needs smacked?” The red head rolled her eyes. “Koga, but I took care of it… for now.” Sango gave Koga an arch look before her gaze settled on Kagome. “Hey, sorry I had to run out so quick before. How are you feeling?”

Kagome gestured with the universal OK signal and let go of the soap dish, now that it didn’t seem there would be an urgent need to brain anyone with it. She saw Sango’s eyes flick to the dish but she didn’t indicate that she’d seen anything. Sango just smiled and pulled herself up to sit on the counter opposite Kagome and Inuyasha. Miroku stepped over to stand next to her and some of the others dragged stools around from the counter to sit on.

Sango began introductions, pointing at each person in turn. First she waved at the tall man who was still looking at Kagome like he was sizing her up. “This obnoxious fool is Koga. Sorry if he was being a toad. Sometimes he and Inuyasha take turns to see who can win the championship title.”

Inuyasha scowled again and leaned against the counter, staying close to Kagome. Sango pointed to the small woman with red hair that had struck Koga. “This is Rosalind, Rosie for short. She’s the sister everyone never had. She showed up when she was about ten I think, and has been a Warden ever since.” Rosie flashed her a smile and waved cheerfully.

Sango pointed at the young woman with short red-brown hair and dark eyes, standing just behind Koga, looking annoyed and slightly apologetic. “This is Ayame. Koga belongs to her, whether he’s behaving himself or not. She’s the one who keeps him alive when I forget why I haven’t killed him yet.” At these words Ayame smiled grimly, reached forward and gave Koga’s ear a flick before she waved at Kagome too.

Gabriel stood next to Ayame, and now flashed her a fanged grin. “You remember me from the other day. I’m old news.” Kagome smiled vaguely and nodded. Sango pointed to a teenage boy with medium length brown hair pulled back in a tail. “This is my brother, Kohaku. He’s in the tenth grade at the local high school. And the girl next to him is my four-year-old daughter, Shiori.”

The little girl had straight, dark hair and wide brown eyes. She smiled easily and waved at Kagome, clinging to Kohaku’s hand. Kagome gave her a warm smile in return and waved back. Sango pursed her lips in thought. “Who all is missing?” Inuyasha stepped in and said, “she met Sess, and Rin and Shippo. Doc Vin is gonna swing by here when he gets back. I think that’s almost all of the regulars, everyone except Yuko and Tsubaki.”

The adults went still for a moment. Kagome saw the momentary tension and furtive looks and remembered what Sesshomaru had said the night before. They had been out looking for this Tsubaki. Sango breathed a sigh as she said, “well, that’s most of us anyway. Are you going to be hanging around? I don’t know what your story is but it would be nice to have some more female brain in the bunch. These guys are great but there’s definitely an excess of testosterone most of the time.”

Kagome smiled hesitantly and shrugged. Inuyasha looked from her to the people spread around his kitchen. “I don’t think she’s sure what she wants to do yet. She’s been asleep a lot of the time. Right now she’s just gotta focus on getting better.”

Sango frowned thoughtfully for a moment. “Where did Vini go anyway?”

Gabriel leaned back against the fridge. “His cousin got in a big car wreck a few weeks ago in La Hoya and he went down to help him out. The accident was all over the news. There were something like 12 vehicles involved.” Sango winced and asked, “his cousin that’s a wheel man?”

Miroku snorted a laugh and nodded, crossing his arms over his chest. “Yeah, guess that puts a real unattractive dent in his street résumé, hugh?” Sango shook her head. “That sucks. It’s going to be tough for him to get any work… well- besides insurance baiting. It might be time for him to find something more legit.”

Sango looked nervous then and turned back to Kagome. “Inuyasha has told you who we are? That we aren’t always… um… running legal?” Kagome nodded and Sango looked relieved. “Good, I hope you won’t hold it against us.” Kagome shrugged and shook her head. Sango relaxed again and continued. “Among our regulars we maintain five residences, one capable of housing up to a dozen or more people if we need to. Inuyasha runs an auto-repair garage with an apartment upstairs- that’s where grease monkey lives.”

Gabriel grinned and took a coke out of the fridge. “Yeah, that’s me. We have a few other properties in the area too. We’ve been established here for as long as I’ve been a Warden.”

Inuyasha commented, “Sess and I moved the crew to this area about twenty years ago. Before that we were situated in a place in Mexico for a few years, and before that, northwest of London for a long time. We pull up stakes every so many decades, when the time seems right. Sometimes that means a long time and sometimes it means only a year. It keeps things interesting… and it’s safer over the long haul.”

Rosie wrinkled her nose and looked a little sad. “Yeah rub it in our faces why don’t you? It must be nice to live practically forever. Imagine all the time to travel, think of how much I could learn.”

Inuyasha shrugged, looking a little grim. “Not forever, just a long time-- we can be killed just as dead as anybody else.”

Ayame sighed heavily and spoke for the first time. “Yeah, but there aren’t many of us that would admit that in public.”

Miroku looked at Rosie. “Mention your wander lust to Sesshomaru. He has all kinds of errands to run from time to time. Sometimes Inuyasha does too. I bet he’d take you with him, or even send you instead if it isn’t something he has to do himself. He’s sent me to do some motorcycle business in Italy twice. It was beautiful.”

Inuyasha leaned back against the counter, crossed his arms over his chest, and snorted in laughter. “Yeah, it’s kind of amazing what a fan of delegation he is in his old age. If you guys knew him before… what a control freak.”

Rosalind’s green eyes danced in amusement, contrasting brilliantly with her bright red hair. She smiled and said, “don’t let him hear you say that.”

As they talked, Kagome tried to roll her shoulders and stretch the stiffness from her muscles without anyone noticing. Her feet had begun tingle as the fell asleep from sitting on the counter so long and her leg was throbbing. She bit back a yawn and Inuyasha’s ears flicked in her direction. “Tired?”

She shrugged and shook her head in an unconvincing denial. Sango noticed the girl’s flagging energy too and hopped nimbly off the counter. “I think it’s time we let her be. You guys are enough to wear anyone out.”

Kagome waved her hand dismissively and shook her head, smiling ruefully. She looked around for her notebook and realized she’d left it on the bedside table; so she mouthed very clearly, “nice to meet you all.” Koga grinned and said, “I like her style. Look how quiet she is. You girls should take lessons.” He cried out in pain as Ayame smacked him in the back of the head. “Her throat’s been damaged recently, that’s all,” Inuyasha told them. “She’s working on it.”

Rosalind looked at her with sympathy. “I hope you feel better soon. Let me know if any of us can get you anything. Inuyasha can get ahold of me, day or night.” Kagome gave her a wave and a nod in gratitude. The crowd began to trickle out the door, leaving well wishes behind them. Finally their visitors were gone and Inuyasha turned around to face her. “Sorry. You kinda got ambushed. I wonder whose brilliant plan that was.”

Kagome shrugged and smiled but Inuyasha scowled. “If Koga ever puts a toe or a word out of line, let me know and I’ll straighten his ass out. He can be obnoxious, but when you get to the bottom of it, he isn’t a bad guy… I guess. He’s strong and he’s loyal-- and that’s important. And if you ever tell him I said so, I’ll call you a liar. Some days I think even so, he isn’t worth the trouble. Ayame mostly does a pretty good job keeping him in his place.”

“I should also warn you about Miroku,” Inuyasha said, almost as an afterthought. “He’s a good guy. He’s one of my best friends. But he’s kindof a grab-ass. He means well but his hands like to wander. I think he knows better than to touch you, but just in case, now you’re aware. I made it clear that I’ll break his fingers, friend or not. Or worse- I told him I’d tell Sango and she would break his fingers for me.”

Kagome looked a little concerned and Inuyasha relaxed his stance, trying to put her at ease as he spoke. “They’re an interesting couple. He’s been disgustingly in love with Sango since he first saw her. He’d never do anything to hurt her. And he’s gotten a lot better since they had Shiori. All the same- he touches you- I kill him, and Sango kills what’s left of him.” She smiled a little again and he studied her for a moment. “You should do that more often- the smile, I mean.”

She blushed and looked down. After a moment her smile faded and her expression became more alert, as if something had just occurred to her. She stiffly reached back to grab the legal pad and sharpie still sitting on the breakfast bar and wrote, ‘do you have a computer I could use the net on?’

Inuyasha shrugged. “Yeah, sure.” He stepped forward and pulled her crutches to her. She bit her lip and looked at him for a moment and then at the crutches. His brows drew together in concern. “What’s the matter?” She grimaced and held her fingers to her lips for a moment before she pointed to her feet and then brought her hands together and pretended to lay her head on them, as if asleep. Inuyasha snorted out a laugh and set the crutches down again. Without a word more he pulled her into his arms. She gasped softly and clung to his neck as he carried her into the living room and set her down in the chair at his desk. She mouthed the words, “thank you.”

“No problem,” he said, as he leaned over her and clicked away with the mouse, opening the web browser. “If you don’t mind my asking, what are you doing?” Kagome had kept ahold of the legal pad and wrote, ‘I want to check some things. The first, I’m hoping I’m wrong about, and the second …’ She paused for a moment and bit her lip before writing, ‘I just want to check on something Naraku said.’

Inuyasha nodded and stepped back to give her some privacy, gathering some dirty dishes from the living room. A few minutes later his ears twitched as he heard a light knocking sound against his desk. He turned around and Kagome pointed to the screen, indicating she wanted him to look at something. Drying his hands, he came over, then frowned when he saw she was maneuvering through a records database with the backsplash of the Los Angeles Police Department.

Inuyasha’s frown deepened when she pulled open a file that displayed the mug shot of a woman with long dark hair and a very angular face. Inuyasha swore and leaned down to brace his hands on the desk as he stared at the screen. The name next to the picture, and above a long list of arrests and investigation records read: Tsubaki Usagi. Several of the case numbers were marked as active.

Kagome’s brows drew together in concern, and when Inuyasha looked down at her, she pointed to her eyes and then to Tsubaki’s picture. Inuyasha frowned in confusion. “You’ve seen her?” She nodded and wrote another message on her notepad. ‘Is this the Tsubaki your people are looking for?’

Inuyasha straightened, his focus returning to the screen. “Yeah, that’s her. Damn it all,” he rubbed his jaw in irritation. “She told me she was clean. I even ran a background check and none of this stuff showed up; just a parking ticket or two. Where did you see her? When?”

Kagome turned to a fresh page and wrote, ‘she was working for Naraku when I was there. She was the one who administered the IV.’ With the back end of the pen she tapped her inner arm once, as if indicating an IV needle. He looked at her skin and saw something he’d missed among all her other injuries. At the crease of her elbow bloomed more dark bruises and several track marks that were in the process of healing over.

Inuyasha’s amber-gold eyes turned a little red around the edges and he looked back at her again, “You’re positive it was this woman? One hundred percent?”

Kagome nodded slowly. Inuyasha turned around and let out a growl of deep frustration, whipping the dish cloth in his hand over the back of the couch with a loud snap. Kagome jumped, dropping the marker, which bounced and rolled under the desk. When he turned around, she could see that, in a way, his features resembled those of his brother a little when he was angry. It was something about the way the golden eyes seemed to burn with a new kind of intense focus.

Those eyes fell on her again where she sat frozen in his desk chair, her fingers clasped tightly in her lap, shoulders hunched in as if to protect herself. She looked at him without directly meeting his gaze and he smelled the abrupt wash of fear and nerves in her scent. He shook himself, pulling in a deep breath. The red edges disappeared from his eyes as he got his temper under control, and his expression softened a little. “I’m mad at Tsubaki, not you. I’m glad you showed me this. Understand?”

She nodded hesitantly, still biting her lip. Inuyasha pulled a kitchen stool up next to her and scrolled through the record, reading silently for a moment. “Look at this- six dates with the system and several offenses each. And there’s three more pending. Damn her…” He sighed heavily and ran a hand through his long silver hair. “I have to call Sesshomaru.”

Kagome looked down and saw the dropped sharpie had rolled out of reach. Inuyasha started to bend down after it but she shook her head. In half a second she’d pulled up the Word Pad application on his computer and typed a message out. “I heard Naraku mention the word Warden several times in the months I was there. Usually he was talking to this woman and she seemed to be reporting to him regularly with information. I didn’t hear any specifics beyond an apartment address she gave him a few weeks ago. It’s a place that’s two blocks from Humboldt University, here in Arcata.”

Inuyasha swore under his breath and pulled out his cell phone. He paced the length of the room restlessly while he waited for his brother to pick up. Kagome turned back to the computer and pulled up the website for the Oregonian newspaper of Portland.

When Sesshomaru answered, there was no greeting. Inuyasha got straight to the point. “Tsubaki belongs to Naraku… Not only that but she has a record a mile long that didn’t come up in any of the normal checks… yeah…I’m sure. That’s probably why no one’s seen her. I found out Naraku was shot right about the time Ayame says she last saw Tsu… I know because I have a fucking witness…” he said, the last almost in a growl. He shot a side-long glance at Kagome before he continued.

“Yeah, she says she heard Tsu give Naraku Rosie’s address last week. Someone needs to call her and she needs to be packed out now… That won’t work, Sango has someone staying there. If Naraku is looking for her, then headquarters is the safest. My address is on everything linked to the garage… yeah. I’ll spread the word- if anyone sees her she’s brought to one of us… mhmm.”

Kagome listened to the remainder of the conversation while she sorted through the week’s news items, scrolling through the pages, her brow furrowed, hoping to find nothing. Inuyasha sighed heavily and hung up the phone, pocketing it and coming back to sit on the stool next to her. He ran his hand over his face with a groan before he looked back at the computer. “What’s in Oregon?”

Kagome didn’t answer, just pursed her lips and kept scrolling through the headlines. She seemed to relax a little in her chair as she reached the end of the news items for the last week and, after a moment of hesitation; she clicked on the tab for the Obituaries, just to be sure. When the page finally loaded he watched her scroll through the entries until she was looking at articles from several days ago.

It was evident in an instant when she found what she was looking for. Everything in her seemed to freeze. Inuyasha frowned as she clicked on the picture of a boy that looked like he was about middle school age. She just stared at the screen for a moment and Inuyasha’s ears drooped a little as he asked quietly, “who is it?”

Kagome dropped her hand from the mouse and sat back in the chair, eyes shining. After a few seconds she sucked in a shuddering breath and slumped forward to hide her face in her hands. Inuyasha smelled the salt of tears and looked closer at the screen. The heading next to the boy’s picture read: Death, Souta Higurashi, Portland resident, 13.

Inuyasha looked closer at the picture and saw a clear resemblance to Kagome. He felt his chest tighten and looked back at the young woman next to him, whose slim shoulders had begun to shake as she sobbed silently. “Kagome, I’m sorry,” he said, reaching out to her. She pulled away from him and a ragged sound seemed to heave itself from her lungs.

She grabbed the edge of the desk and pulled herself up, pushing the computer chair aside as she hobbled to the hallway. Inuyasha leaped up and followed her as she pulled herself into the bathroom and collapsed on the floor in front of the toilet, her body seizing as she threw up the limited contents of her stomach, alternately sobbing and heaving. Her grief seemed to have a power all its own and there was no stopping it.

Kagome felt her hair lifted from her face and a warm body kneeling next to hers while her stomach continued to heave. After several minutes there was nothing left in her to give, and the seizing eased. The soothing presence next to her was gone for a moment as she spat one more time, panting, her face covered in sweat and tears. A strong arm was suddenly around her shoulders and she let Inuyasha help her sit back on the cold tile.

She felt herself pulled against a hard chest and a cup of water pressed into her shaking fingers. The first swallow she nearly coughed back up, between the sharp sob and the pain in her throat. Inuyasha’s frown deepened as he looked down to see her lips reddened with blood. A glance in the toilet showed the contents tinged pink as well, and he cursed as he closed the lid and flushed it away.

Inuyasha handed her some toilet paper to wipe her mouth and prayed the blood was only from her raw throat. There hadn’t been a lot of blood, but it was enough that the thought crept along the edge of his mind that she might have some internal damage after all, and that wasn’t something he could easily fix.

All she could do was cry. They sat like that on the bathroom floor for about a half hour as Kagome’s guilt and upset poured from her in torrential waves. Inuyasha just held her until, finally, she was too exhausted to cry anymore. It had been many years since he’d witnessed such a wave of raw human emotion.

Her eyes burned and her face and throat felt rough. Inuyasha reached behind him and grabbed a wash cloth from the side of the tub, dipping it in the water cup and putting it in her hand. Kagome wiped her face and nose, and croaked out a whispered apology. Inuyasha gently pulled her chin up so she was looking at him and said, “stop that. You have nothing to be sorry for.”

She nodded feebly and dropped her gaze to the cloth in her hands. With a frown, Inuyasha asked, “Naraku?” Kagome nodded, a few more tears leaking from her eyes and sliding down her cheeks. She worked her mouth for a moment, whispering hoarsely, “because of me…” but she stopped almost immediately with a grimace and put her hand to her throat. Inuyasha pulled her against him again, murmuring against her hair, “don’t talk. I know.”

They sat for another minute in miserable silence. Kagome registered somewhere in her mind that it was nice to be held like this, against a warm someone who offered comfort. It felt safe, rather than confining. When she started to get drowsy Inuyasha carefully maneuvered them so he could stand up with her in his arms. He took her to the guest bedroom and sat down on the bed, pulling his legs in and leaning back against the headboard with her in his lap. The blankets were pulled up around her and tucked securely as she lay curled against his chest, her breathing becoming deep and even as sleep overtook her.

He looked down into her face, washed out and blotchy from crying, her cheek marred by scrapes and bruises. Tiny red dots were forming against the pale skin beneath her eyes where the intense physical reactions had broken capillaries, and his heart ached for her. It wasn’t right that she hurt so much in so many ways. It made the beast in his chest want to snarl, and snap, and bite at the cause of her discomfort. Right now though, this was the best he could do.

After he was sure she wouldn’t wake, he carefully slid out from under her and went back to his desk. He looked more carefully at the picture of the boy, who still looked out from the computer screen. The obituary didn’t give much information besides the date of death, which was about three days before he’d found her in the river, and the arrangements made for graveside services that would take place tomorrow. He would try and look into it, see if he could find out exactly what had happened, not that it mattered. There was nothing that could be done for the boy now.

Inuyasha closed his eyes and let his head rest in his hands for a moment. It was still hard when this happened, and it happened all too often. He knew Naraku had no problem going after kids. Sometimes it seemed like he preferred it. They were easier to control, to use, to manipulate. Naraku was a creature that enjoyed being able to play with his food.

With a sigh, he closed the newspaper’s website. He wanted to go back and take a closer look at Tsubaki’s record, but when he tried, he found nothing. There was no evidence the web page had ever touched the software. When he hit the back button, it just brought him to a Hotmail login page. He frowned. He didn’t even have a Hotmail account. His email was with Google. When he searched the browsing history, nothing was there but the Oregonian’s website.

Inuyasha sat back in his chair, crossing his arms as he stared at the screen, trying to think. After a moment he pulled up the LAPD website. Most of the pages seemed to be visitor information, local news, job openings, and community outreach programs. After clicking around for twenty minutes through the various links and reading everything he could find, he still hadn’t found what she’d showed him.

Finally he found a link hidden away that listed police databases but it was locked. When he attempted to open the link it promptly threw up a dialogue box asking for his username, password and badge number. For a few long moments, he stared at the blinking cursor with a frown. Then he sat back again, muttering to himself, “I’ll be damned…”

Of course information to that extent would not have been so available, just laid out on a public web page. So how had she pulled it up? And how had she gotten into it so fast? The term ‘hacker’ drifted through his thoughts and he raised a brow. Surely not… He looked at the entrance to the hallway, down which she slept, exhausted. Aloud again, he said to himself, “no way…”

With a sigh, he logged off and looked at the clock. It was almost 4 p.m. His phone began to vibrate on his desk and Sesshomaru’s contact information flashed on the screen. When he answered the call Sesshomaru said without preamble, “there’s no one at loose ends right now to go get Rosalind. I have a meeting with London in about five minutes. Miroku said he can leave work if you aren’t in a position to make the run over there. I called her and she’s packing now.”

Inuyasha thought for a minute, and then said, “no, I can go. Kagome just… well, I’ll tell you when I get over there. She’s going to be asleep for a while I think. I’ll leave her a note.” He didn’t like the idea of leaving her alone, but no one except those in the central circle of the Wardens knew where she was. A few hours should be safe enough. He went into the bedroom and opened a closet, shoving the few hanging clothes aside to push on a sliding panel in the back wall. With a soft click, it came forward and he pushed that to the side as well.

Stepping forward into the closet he scrutinized the shelves that were hidden there and chose an M-9 Bayonet knife and sheath from the small collection. He flipped it in his hand and attached it to his belt. Pulling off his shirt, he shrugged on a Kevlar vest. Then he pulled out a clip of ammunition and his CZ-P07 duty hand gun, tucked everything away, and closed the panel. He shrugged his shirt back on and made sure it covered everything without overly strange looking bulk.

When he left the apartment, he made sure to throw the deadbolt on the front door and engaged all the additional locks he’d installed on the inside. This done, he turned and carefully climbed out the living room window. Exiting this way allowed him to have all those extra locks in place and he didn’t care to take any chances he didn’t have to with the sleeping girl. Perched carefully on the ledge, he slid the window shut again and leaped down the four stories to the ground, catching hold of a fire escape railing for a moment to soften his landing.

Within moments he was starting the engine on his black Jeep Wrangler and pulling out of the parking lot.