InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Dark Hour ❯ That Old Feeling ( Chapter 19 )

Ch. 19

That Old Feeling...

Even before opening her eyes, Kagome knew Sesshomaru was back with her. She felt his arms around her, his soft breath against her neck. A feeling of peacefulness settled over her and she lingered a moment longer in his embrace.

However, reality quickly set in. She still had a life and a job to get back to...a job she hoped was still hers. Kagome frowned, wishing she could stay like this for the rest of the morning. She sighed, trying not to disturb Sesshomaru as she rose reluctantly rose from the bed. She was startled when she felt him reach out and grab her arm. Kagome smiled, letting herself be pulled back into bed.

"Where do you think your going?" Sesshomaru muttered, his eyes still closed. Kagome placed a small kiss on the tip of his nose, knowing that would get a response. He opened his eyes.

"Why are you up so early?" He asked, brushing a few stray strands of hair from her face. Even that small innocent gesture sent tingles up her spine. She looked away from his gaze, finding herself drawn to the golden eyes looking down at her.

"Well...I have a job that I need to get back to." She explained. Sesshomaru frowned. "You don't really need to go back just yet..." He told her, nipping at her neck. Kagome sighed in contentment. She let his hands travel lazily over her breasts before traveling lower. Kagome sucked in a breath when she felt his finger brush her lightly.

"Do you really want to leave now, Kagome?" He whispered against her ear. Kagome shuddered, her body screaming for more, but she really had to get back to work. She quickly gave Sesshomaru a peck on the check and slipped from his grasp. He mumbled in protest. Kagome blew him a kiss over her shoulder.

"Gotta go, but I promise to make up for it later." She told him. Sesshomaru smirked and closed his eyes, hoping to reclaim sleep.

~~~~~~

"Kagome! Good to see you!"

Kagome smiled and placed her purse on her desk. "Good to be seen, Shippou." She responded. She eyed the stack of phone messages and groaned. Jumping back into work had seemed like a good idea at the time....

"Where's the boss?" She asked. Shippou rolled his eyes and gestured toward his office. "It seems like ever since you left, he's been in this foul mood." Kagome laughed. "Nah, you know he's always in a bad mood." Shippou leaned against the desk, his gaze inquisitive.

"So what kept you out all this time?" Kagome looked from the message she was reading to the young man standing in front of her. She shook her head slightly. "Just a touch of the flu." She answered vaguely. She crumpled up the slip of paper and tossed it in the garbage can.

"Well, I better go talk to Frank so I guess I'll see you later." She said, turning towards the editor's office. Shippou stared after her for a couple of minutes, his expression unfathomable, before going about his business.

Kagome tapped lightly on the office door before letting herself in. Frank was standing with his back to her, yelling into the phone about what sounded suspiciously like a lawsuit. Kagome waited, watching him in amusement. After loudly shouting "asshole" into the receiver, he slammed the phone down.

"What manners, what grace." Kagome commented dryly. Frank turned to her and scowled. "Damned politicians think they're rulers of the world." He muttered. He eyed her. "Are you well enough to be back?"

Kagome walked to a seat and sat down, nodding her head. "I'm dying to get back to work, actually." Frank smiled widely at her. "Good, because I have an assignment that has your name written all over it." He reached into a drawer and pulled out a couple of papers clipped together. He handed them to her.

"Happened early this morning," He explained. "Young woman found dead, her body horribly mutilated." Kagome glanced at the papers and grimaced. The body in the picture was altered beyond recognition. She studied the picture closer.

"These marks look like claw marks." She muttered. Frank made a sound of disgust. "My sources down at the police department say they are claw marks. How they got there is anybody's guess." Kagome averted her gaze from the gruesome photos, her stomach starting to churn.

"Do they have any leads?" She asked. Frank shook his head. "Not that I know of. She was found in an alleyway near..." He tapped his chin, thinking. "Ah, I think it was near the intersection of Kennedy and Park." Kagome looked at him, surprised.

"That's near my apartment complex." Frank shrugged. "Shouldn't be hard to find, then." He told her. Kagome shook off the feeling of unease that settled over her and rose from the chair.

"Well, I guess I'll get on this right away." Frank nodded at her. "Be careful." He called after her as she left his office.

~~~~~~

"How was your night?"

Sesshomaru looked up as Onigumo returned to their table. He took a sip of water. "Fine." He responded nonchalantly. Onigumo nodded and glanced over the menu.

"Yours?" Sesshomaru asked, glancing idly around the restaurant. Even though it was well past lunch, the small eatery still held a sizable crowd. He didn't know why, but his senses were on alert. He didn't let it show, however.

"Went to the Magnolia Room and had a couple of drinks before going to the hotel." He said. Sesshomaru nodded absently, his attention focused on their surroundings. Onigumo picked up on Sesshomaru's lack of interest.

"Something wrong?" He inquired. Sesshomaru slid his gaze to his uncle's. His brow furrowed in uncertainty. "I'm not sure," He answered. "I'm getting a strange feeling, but..." He let the sentence trail off. Onigumo glanced around. "Naraku?" He asked. Sesshomaru shook his head. "I don't know."

Sesshomaru decided to focus on other matters. "Onigumo, have you experienced any...blackouts?" He asked delicately. Onigumo gave him a startled look. He opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted by the waiter. Once their orders were taken, Onigumo leaned closer towards Sesshomaru.

"Why would you ask that?" Sesshomaru looked down at the beige tablecloth. He didn't want to tell Onigumo of Kagome's disturbing incident, but he knew he had to. The more bizarre things got, the more they seemed make sense. Sesshomaru sensed a connection between Onigumo's forced coma and Kagome's odd behavior.

"Last night, Kagome had some kind of hypnotic episode." Sesshomaru explained. "She tried to kill me." Onigumo's mouth opened in a small 'oh' of surprise. "Are you certain?" Sesshomaru smiled humorlessly. "Trying to stab me with a butcher knife pretty much tipped me off."

Onigumo's eyes shined with concern. "Is she alright?" Sesshomaru nodded. "She came out of it, but we didn't..." Sesshomaru didn't finish the rest of the sentence. He'd been about to say they hadn't gotten around to talking about it, a statement that would lead to questions he wasn't ready to answer.

"After the ordeal, she was weak and needed to rest." He finished. Onigumo took a large gulp of water. "I'm sorry to hear that, but I haven't had any blackouts or anything like that." He said. Sesshomaru believed his uncle was telling the truth, but it did nothing to quell his apprehension.

"What do you think was the cause of her...odd state?" Onigumo asked. Sesshomaru sighed. He really had no idea and that bothered him more than anything else. "I don't know." He said quietly. His mind wandered back to the previous night, remembering the pure look of terror in Kagome's eyes. She'd had no idea what was going on, that much Sesshomaru was sure of.

"I don't know, but I'm almost certain it will happen again unless I stop it." He said in frustration. Sesshomaru's gaze moved beyond Onigumo, his eyes narrowing slightly. Onigumo was talking, but Sesshomaru heard none of it.

There was a woman sitting alone a couple of tables away. She was staring at Sesshomaru, her gaze unwavering. Her behavior alone was alarming, but that wasn't what sent an alarm off in Sesshomaru's head. Her face, those lifeless eyes...

"Gensai, E." He said suddenly, the long forgotten name popping into his head. Onigumo's mouth stopped moving, his eyes flickering.

"Wha--" Onigumo whispered. In one swift movement, Sesshomaru moved from his seat, grabbing Onigumo by the arm.

"Run." He commanded just before the woman pulled a gun from her purse. He gave Onigumo a hard shove towards the exit, his only thought of protecting his uncle. He reached into his jacket, retrieving the revolver he kept with him at all times. A shot rang out and the restaurant immediately erupted into chaos. Frightened screams rang out as people hurriedly scrambled for the exit.

The woman's only target was Onigumo as her dull eyes instantly locked onto Onigumo's retreating figure. Sesshomaru took aim, heedless of the people scrambling around him. He squeezed the trigger and watched as the bullet struck the woman's leg. She faltered for a moment before turning her gaze to Sesshomaru.

He watched her grimly. Her face registered no pain whatsoever despite just being shot in the leg. She pointed the gun at Sesshomaru, walking slowly towards him. Without hesitation, Sesshomaru squeezed off another round, this time hitting her in the shoulder. Again, the woman seemed oblivious.

"Kill anyone that gets in my way." The woman chanted, her eyes staring clear through Sesshomaru. Just before she could fire another shot, Sesshomaru twisted the gun from her grasp, holding her tightly in a chokehold. Her hands clawed at his arms in a desperate attempt to get free.

"Who sent you?" Sesshomaru demanded. The woman remained mute. Sesshomaru didn't need her to tell him, he already knew.

"E. Gensai." He said. The woman's struggles ceased momentarily before she resumed her fight to free herself. He knew she was too far-gone to fully recognize her own name. Sesshomaru realized with a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach that the final puzzle pieces were firmly in place. He released the woman from his grip. She turned to him, her eyes cold and dead. Without a second thought, Sesshomaru raised the gun and put a bullet through her head. She was finally free.

a/n: hmmm...anyone confused? trying to keep you all guessing...hope it's working out and i'm not just confusing the hell out of ya! thanks for the reviews...glad to know that you like the story and the direction it's going in...will post the next chap hopefully tomorrow cuz this one was so short...keep reviewing and i'll see ya next chap!