I'm not gonna put the disclaimer here......its in the prologue. ^.^
Cat-and-Mouse
I had just put Chibi-usa to bed, in the next room, when I heard her lightly snoring. No doubt dreaming of princesses, castles, and flying horses. She fell asleep quickly, giving me a moment to think. Seiya and I had planned everything out; this would be simple run. Tomorrow we would go to the RADK Company building and try to find the incriminating files on Mamoru. The disk we were looking for held documentation of Mamoru's past activities, business dealings, future plans, and personal employee lists. Or at least we believed so. I shuddered as I thought of seeing him again. His blue eyes still haunted my dreams, his body still peaked out of every shadow. Five years and I was still afraid of him. He was the only man who I feared to the point where I could not sleep; the visions I had in my sleep were chilling reality. I would stay awake and think of everything but him. I liked to believe that all people had goodness in them, but I knew he was pure evil. Murder, deception, power and lies were merely ways of life to him; not sins. He created his own law and justice, and provided judgement to those who broke his law. He was like a god and we, the players in his world. One of our coworkers mentioned, once, after seeing his picture that Mamoru had the looks that would make a woman forget about the law. I laughed at her comment, but knew she was right. Mamoru had the ability to make even the most pure woman shiver with passion. But to act out that passion would be choosing life and death, heaven and hell.
Our dealings with Mamoru had somehow become a sick game of 'cat-and-mouse'. We would chase, and Mamoru would escape without a problem. We were always one step behind. A game, he laughed, was perfect. I was sick of this game. We would lose. I always wondered, though, if I was in the game or if it was between only Seiya and Mamoru. Their past together was a mystery to me, and one Seiya never spoke of. Whenever they were near one another the anger and hatred that radiated off them filled the room.
I walked over to the table by the bed and looked over the information. I can't remember how long I stood there reading when a pair of muscled arms caught my waist. I smiled as I felt Seiya's chin nuzzle my hair and neck.
God, I love you, I thought as I moved into his embrace.
"I love you," he whispered in my ear. We were the perfect pair. He tensed as he looked over my shoulder. Too many emotions would surface if we saw Mamoru. Seiya hated the fact that I was going to be as close as he was to Mamoru, and I hated the fact that he was going to be as close to Mamoru was I was. Last time we had faced Mamoru too many things happened; too many mistakes were made. He let go of me and walked to where I had just stood and looked out the window. Worry and anxiety were shown clearly in his body. His shoulders were tense and stiff, and his stance was square. He had his arms crossed in front of his and his was leaning his chin on one fist; his 'thinking' stance. Whenever he was tense, it showed through this one position. He would spend hours staring off working out every angle. Seiya knew the importance of this mission and had taken it upon himself to make sure we did not fail. Mamoru's came would end.
"You know you don't have to go to the building. We could get some communication equipment and-" I cut him off before he could finish his 'idea'.
"Seiya, you know I have to do this. I can't sit back and let you face Mamoru alone." The hairs on the back of my neck began to rise at the thought of Seiya and Mamoru fighting one on one. It would be like setting two gladiators against one another. If anything happened to him, I'd never forgive myself. The conversation was over, as far as I was concerned.
I had only seen Mamoru a few times, but each memory was sharp and clear. The last time I saw Mamoru, he was in excellent shape. He would be a hard man to beat. He defeated a small army, himself, when trying to escape to safety.
I changed out of my jeans into my nightshirt and slipped under the covers. I heard Seiya exhale a deep breath and move across the room. The conversation was over. I felt the bed slope down and a few moments later an arm draped over me. I loved falling asleep in his arms and in his scent; no matter what we talked about before we went to bed the angry feelings never made it to the bed. One of us would drop the issue, I knew he was thinking of the best but I needed this mission as much as he did. I closed my eyes and dreamt, again, of how the mission would play out. Every night I had dreams of it and each night the dream had a different ending.
- - - - - - -
The next morning I stared into a pair of black button eyes. Diana. Sometime during the night, Chibi-usa had crawled into our bed and fallen asleep by my side, with her stuffed cat in tow. I hugged her close and kissed her forehead before turning and looking over Seiya to see the time.
6:24. There was no point going back to sleep. I slipped out of the bed, careful not to awaken either of them. A smile came to my lips as I watched them sleep. A thirty-two year man and his five-year-old daughter, I'd have given anything at that moment for my camera. A happy family.
After my morning shower I carried Chibi-usa back into her bed and woke Seiya with a kiss.
"Morning, angel," he murmured, his voice was rough and scratchy. My God, I loved that voice in the morning. It reminded me of a lost warrior returning to his princess. I wanted nothing more than to slide back into bed and love him.
"Time to get up, sleepyhead," I tapped his nose as I moved to put on some makeup. Looking into the mirror, I saw him watching me.
"I wish you wouldn't come with me tonight," he whispered. I sighed and turned. His blues eyes were searching mine for the answer he wanted. I turned back to the mirror and shook my head.
Didn't he know that I was not going to change my mind? Chibi-usa tiptoed into the room and sat on the bed next to her father. As I watched her in the reflection I had the urge to stay behind; I knew how much she hated when we both went on these 'nights out'. It wasn't fair to her. In a flash she could loose her parents, and never know why. I know she hated the fact that both of us would go out sometimes days at a time; especially when she would watch shows on television where one parent was at home constantly. That isn't true for all families, I would tell her. But in her small world she couldn't understand it. Had it been any other assignment I would have stayed home. But this was Mamoru, and I couldn't let Seiya do this alone. This was our assignment and we had worked far too long for one of us not to go. Seiya would need backup, and I was it. It was the way we always worked; whenever Seiya and I had to go on an assignment we would back each other up. And this assignment, no matter how many times we talked about it, was personal to both of us.
- - - - - - -
That night we left Chibi-usa with the babysitter and went on our mission. Babysitter isn't really the word; the Agency always took care of her when we went out on assignment. Our employers supported our family and always helped us when needed. We left her watching Disney's 'Aladdin' with a good friend of Seiya's and two additional guards.
Dressed in black we crept into the security guard's room where three men were seated by the computer monitors. Two had fallen asleep while the third was straining to stay awake. Quietly Seiya moved behind to the man blinking himself awake, while I moved to the side. I nodded to Seiya, and he nodded back.
"Excuse me," I said smiling. Startled, the man grabbed for his gun, which was in the hands of my husband. Seiya emptied the gun and hit the guard on the head. The man fell hard to the ground and we tied him to the chair. Seiya grabbed one of the sleeping men and tied his arms behind his chair while I did the same to the other one sleeping. With the room to ourselves we changed a few commands in the computer, all the alarms had been deactivated. Leaving the room we entered a long hallway,
"You take the left, and I'll take the right," I said pointing in each direction respectively.
"Okay, watch your back, angel," he replied headed down his side of the hall.
"You too," I whispered back. I watched him head down his side of the hall, shook my head, and headed down my side.
I opened every door and looked for the one book or disk that would help. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew that Seiya was doing the same, only he was doing it twice as fast. I was going through various files in the fourth room, when I felt a strong arm wrap around my waist.
"All alone, Princess?"
Shit. Mamoru swung the chair around so that we were face-to-face; inches apart. I could feel the heat off his body. He had on a dark grayish suit that echoed his persona. Evil. Dark. Dangerous. The last time I saw Mamoru he had worn a similar suit. The gray was calm and soothing, but also held the potential for danger; for Mamoru danger was like a state of being. He was danger.
"And where is your dear husband tonight?" he asked as he grabbed my arm and led me out the door. The gun was all the argument I needed. I remained silent; pleading that Seiya had not been caught.
How did I not hear him? I should have been watching. I scolded myself. Will I ever see them again? Chibi-usa. Seiya.
My family was all I had and because of my carelessness I could lose them.
I was brought into a bright room with machines and computers situated around the walls. It looked like there was a camera in every room in the building linked to this room as well as the control room we were in before, something we had not counted on. I couldn't see Seiya on any of them, which worried me. There were other computers that held codes and dealings in different languages. We had no idea how big his operation had gotten over the years. He sat me down on a chair and tied my arms down; dropping a disk and a paper on my lap, he came close to my face, again,
"This is what you were looking for, Princess," he said. He looked like he was going say something more when the door burst open. Two guards came in with Seiya. His left cheek had been cut and a bruise was forming on his forehead. Mamoru locked eyes with Seiya and gave him a smug smile. He then turned to me and crouched down so he was eye-to-eye with me. Without making a sound he cupped my face with his hands and kissed me. The room had fallen silent and my attempts to resist were useless. He forced my mouth open and plunged his tongue into my mouth. His other hand came up to wrap around my neck, pulling me closer to him. He released his hold on me and turned back to my husband, without giving me a second glance. It was only then that I realized another man had been holding Seiya back. Finally, Mamoru moved away from me with a smile on his face.
"I can see why you married her, Old Friend," Mamoru laughed. Seiya's face burned red and his body shook with anger.
Oh God, I was in a state of shock, I was petrified. This isn't happening. We were supposed to come in, grab the disk, run to headquarters, drop off the disk and get home before Chibi-usa was asleep. That was the plan. We always had a plan and we always followed the plan.
The two guards kept their grip on Seiya, who had begun to resist again. The third had gone to stand on the side, ready to help. Mamoru laughed and walked towards the group. Seiya and Mamoru whispered while I strained to hear them. Seiya's anger was obvious. His face was strained and he struggled with more aggression, the only difference I could see in Mamoru was his jaw tighten. Then Mamoru punched Seiya in the gut and walked away. I felt my breath leave me as Seiya collapsed. Seiya was down, I was tied, and Mamoru was right in front of us. This was, almost, like last time. Dear God not again.
A man from one of the computers walked over to Mamoru and spoke to him in a hushed voice. Occasionally nodding and whispering back, Mamoru smiled and turned around. My attention was on Seiya who was still on the ground, courtesy of the two guards who were kicking him.
"Enough," Mamoru said, "This game has gone on too long. The screen." All eyes turned from what they were doing, to the screen in the center of the room. An uneasy feeling filled my gut, as the picture became clear. One of the Agency's buildings, the one with Chibi-usa in it came to view. Oh, God, no.
A man in black became visible and began talking in a lowered tone,
"Sir, we have the parcel. Everything is ready." My eyes were glued to the man on the screen.
"Excellent, wait till my command," Mamoru said as he typed a few codes into one of the computers, the man in black nodded and turned to face the building. After Mamoru finished a small black disk popped out of the computer disk drive, "Now."
.
The whole building exploded in a matter of seconds.
Seiya and I yelled out at the same time. I felt the tears streaming down. My heart stopped. My body froze. Mamoru ignored our cries.
He turned and picked up a gun from the table by him, his face was cold and emotionless. He turned to face Seiya and in a low monotone voice, he said, "Like I said, the game is over."
Everything was happening so fast, I wasn't sure what was really going on at that moment. Every other thought was of Chibi-Usa. Walking over to me Mamoru turned my face with the gun. The coldness barrel of the gun brought me back to the present. My body was shaking. Tears were streaming down my face. Please, God, help us. Somewhere deep down, I knew how this would end. I knew what was going to happen, he wouldn't hurt me. I couldn't stop it. He kissed me softly, barely touching me; then turned to Seiya, smiling. Seiya's eyes had lost all color, all life; they were pools of darkness. His eyes never left Mamoru's. As I looked, I realized that Seiya was different. I had never seen his eyes turn such a color. Mamoru walked so that he was in front of me; we were in a triangle. He threw a quick glance at me.
"Goodbye old friend," Mamoru whispered.
I heard myself scream, again. Seiya's body fell to the ground and a red pool quickly surrounded him. His breathing was thick and rapid; he slowly turned his face to me and slowly all the color drained. His eyes found mine, and for a brief instant, I had the feeling this was a nightmare. That this was not happening; no one's eyes could be so empty. Seiya couldn't die. But the pool around him had grown and his eyes slowly closed. This was no illusion. His body stopped moving. And my life was over.
My mind began to shut down. My whole life was gone. My family has been killed in a matter of moments. I didn't know what to do; I couldn't move. I had been straining against the bonds since Seiya had been brought in, and my arms had begun to bleed from the burns. The pain didn't register, but I felt blood slide down my arms. I was afraid to blink, afraid to breathe. I heard whispering at my side, but ignored it, until a single word caught my attention
"... Chibi-usa...." I'm not sure who had said her name or why, but I distinctly heard the word 'Chibi-usa' mentioned.
I turned and watched the man from the screen carrying my daughter. Her tear-streaked face was in the center of the screen clutching her stuffed cat tightly; her attention was off to the side or the screen. My senses came back in an instant. Suddenly the world was clear again. She looked into the screen and our eyes met. I heard her cry out for me as they threw her into the van.
There was talking and rushing around and suddenly I was alone. Mamoru had packed up everything and left...with my daughter. The room was now a vacant shadow of the chaos that had taken place moments before. The computers had been turned off and all the men had left. My mind was going in every direction, trying to pick up some information and register what had happened.
Seiya was gone.
Mamoru had killed him.
Chibi-usa was gone.
Mamoru had taken her.
I was tied down.
Mamoru had gotten away, again.
I don't know how long I sat there, staring at Seiya, sobbing, begging God for a miracle; when the other agents came in. Someone untied my arms and I flew to Seiya. Anyone in my way was pushed to the side. The disk and paper were thrown to the floor. I held onto him and wept. His blood had cooled down, but I still begged him to open his eyes.
We weren't ready. He knew. It was a trap. The realization hit me like a cold slap in the face. The room grew fuzzy, and cloudy, and the voices became muffled. It had been a trap. Everything had happened so fast. The pain in my arms shot up my body. My head had begun to pound sometime during the course of events. My body was sore and heavy.
Darkness overcame me.
- - - - - - -
The funeral was held a few days later. They had found the remains of the three guards in the building. I cried on and off all day, and afterwards I swore to not cry again.
Don't show emotions to your enemy, Seiya had told me.
I held his wedding ring close to my heart and felt the last tear fall. I walked around the house in a trance-like state. Different agents were 'assigned' to watch over me. They were all friends who, I know, would not have left me alone. I walked into Chibi-usa's room and saw a picture and a note on her pillow:
"' Lives can be erased, Princess, just look at Daddy.
Go to: Taiki Kou
507 Mylie Dr.
Namls Wotl, OK
Mr. Kou has been a wonderful babysitter, shame he will not be here in a
week.
Let a new game begin, Princess. The old one is dead.'"
The picture was of Chibi-usa at the picnic last month. My god, he was there. He had been so close to us, to her. New tears began to form; tears of anger and hate. I blinked them away and moved to her bed.
I stared at the picture and the note, waiting for something to happen. I second realization came slowly. He had been here. He had been in my house. With all the security we had someone had gotten inside my home, into my daughter's room. I went back to our bedroom and sat on Seiya's side of the bed and couldn't stop the tears. I laid down and breathed in his scent. On his pillow I could still feel him about to walk through the door. I had never felt so vulnerable. I stood and wiped my tears away and felt my body shaking. It was time. Mamoru's last line resounded though my mind, let a new game begin ... the only is dead. I grabbed my suitcase and packed as much as I could. If he wanted a game, we would play.
- - - - - - -
The next morning I went to my Supervisor and explained my situation. I told him my plans, and how I would do it with or without his help. He agreed, understanding my situation. He gave me access to Class 5 information, and anything else with Mamoru's name on it. I would work alone, provided Mamoru did not kill again, and all expenses would be put onto the agency. However if Mamoru took another life, another agent would be assigned to the case.
- - - - - - -
A week later we found all the details surrounding Taiki Kou, and his death. He seemed to be a normal citizen. He didn't have any outstanding tickets and had no criminal past that we knew of. He was a Literary major who worked at the local museum.
As I neared his house I knew I was too late. I felt my hope crash as the police cars and emergency vehicles flashed their lights. I parked my car and entered the house. Flashing my ID to two guards at the door. They directed my to go up the stairs. By the time I reached the top of the stairs, the scent of death was obvious. When I initially walked into the house, I smelt the normal house smells with the musk underneath the smells. But by now the musky dry smell of death took over the other scents.
I made my way to the room and braced myself at the door.
"Jesus," I whispered. No one could have prepared me for what I saw.
Cat-and-Mouse
I had just put Chibi-usa to bed, in the next room, when I heard her lightly snoring. No doubt dreaming of princesses, castles, and flying horses. She fell asleep quickly, giving me a moment to think. Seiya and I had planned everything out; this would be simple run. Tomorrow we would go to the RADK Company building and try to find the incriminating files on Mamoru. The disk we were looking for held documentation of Mamoru's past activities, business dealings, future plans, and personal employee lists. Or at least we believed so. I shuddered as I thought of seeing him again. His blue eyes still haunted my dreams, his body still peaked out of every shadow. Five years and I was still afraid of him. He was the only man who I feared to the point where I could not sleep; the visions I had in my sleep were chilling reality. I would stay awake and think of everything but him. I liked to believe that all people had goodness in them, but I knew he was pure evil. Murder, deception, power and lies were merely ways of life to him; not sins. He created his own law and justice, and provided judgement to those who broke his law. He was like a god and we, the players in his world. One of our coworkers mentioned, once, after seeing his picture that Mamoru had the looks that would make a woman forget about the law. I laughed at her comment, but knew she was right. Mamoru had the ability to make even the most pure woman shiver with passion. But to act out that passion would be choosing life and death, heaven and hell.
Our dealings with Mamoru had somehow become a sick game of 'cat-and-mouse'. We would chase, and Mamoru would escape without a problem. We were always one step behind. A game, he laughed, was perfect. I was sick of this game. We would lose. I always wondered, though, if I was in the game or if it was between only Seiya and Mamoru. Their past together was a mystery to me, and one Seiya never spoke of. Whenever they were near one another the anger and hatred that radiated off them filled the room.
I walked over to the table by the bed and looked over the information. I can't remember how long I stood there reading when a pair of muscled arms caught my waist. I smiled as I felt Seiya's chin nuzzle my hair and neck.
God, I love you, I thought as I moved into his embrace.
"I love you," he whispered in my ear. We were the perfect pair. He tensed as he looked over my shoulder. Too many emotions would surface if we saw Mamoru. Seiya hated the fact that I was going to be as close as he was to Mamoru, and I hated the fact that he was going to be as close to Mamoru was I was. Last time we had faced Mamoru too many things happened; too many mistakes were made. He let go of me and walked to where I had just stood and looked out the window. Worry and anxiety were shown clearly in his body. His shoulders were tense and stiff, and his stance was square. He had his arms crossed in front of his and his was leaning his chin on one fist; his 'thinking' stance. Whenever he was tense, it showed through this one position. He would spend hours staring off working out every angle. Seiya knew the importance of this mission and had taken it upon himself to make sure we did not fail. Mamoru's came would end.
"You know you don't have to go to the building. We could get some communication equipment and-" I cut him off before he could finish his 'idea'.
"Seiya, you know I have to do this. I can't sit back and let you face Mamoru alone." The hairs on the back of my neck began to rise at the thought of Seiya and Mamoru fighting one on one. It would be like setting two gladiators against one another. If anything happened to him, I'd never forgive myself. The conversation was over, as far as I was concerned.
I had only seen Mamoru a few times, but each memory was sharp and clear. The last time I saw Mamoru, he was in excellent shape. He would be a hard man to beat. He defeated a small army, himself, when trying to escape to safety.
I changed out of my jeans into my nightshirt and slipped under the covers. I heard Seiya exhale a deep breath and move across the room. The conversation was over. I felt the bed slope down and a few moments later an arm draped over me. I loved falling asleep in his arms and in his scent; no matter what we talked about before we went to bed the angry feelings never made it to the bed. One of us would drop the issue, I knew he was thinking of the best but I needed this mission as much as he did. I closed my eyes and dreamt, again, of how the mission would play out. Every night I had dreams of it and each night the dream had a different ending.
- - - - - - -
The next morning I stared into a pair of black button eyes. Diana. Sometime during the night, Chibi-usa had crawled into our bed and fallen asleep by my side, with her stuffed cat in tow. I hugged her close and kissed her forehead before turning and looking over Seiya to see the time.
6:24. There was no point going back to sleep. I slipped out of the bed, careful not to awaken either of them. A smile came to my lips as I watched them sleep. A thirty-two year man and his five-year-old daughter, I'd have given anything at that moment for my camera. A happy family.
After my morning shower I carried Chibi-usa back into her bed and woke Seiya with a kiss.
"Morning, angel," he murmured, his voice was rough and scratchy. My God, I loved that voice in the morning. It reminded me of a lost warrior returning to his princess. I wanted nothing more than to slide back into bed and love him.
"Time to get up, sleepyhead," I tapped his nose as I moved to put on some makeup. Looking into the mirror, I saw him watching me.
"I wish you wouldn't come with me tonight," he whispered. I sighed and turned. His blues eyes were searching mine for the answer he wanted. I turned back to the mirror and shook my head.
Didn't he know that I was not going to change my mind? Chibi-usa tiptoed into the room and sat on the bed next to her father. As I watched her in the reflection I had the urge to stay behind; I knew how much she hated when we both went on these 'nights out'. It wasn't fair to her. In a flash she could loose her parents, and never know why. I know she hated the fact that both of us would go out sometimes days at a time; especially when she would watch shows on television where one parent was at home constantly. That isn't true for all families, I would tell her. But in her small world she couldn't understand it. Had it been any other assignment I would have stayed home. But this was Mamoru, and I couldn't let Seiya do this alone. This was our assignment and we had worked far too long for one of us not to go. Seiya would need backup, and I was it. It was the way we always worked; whenever Seiya and I had to go on an assignment we would back each other up. And this assignment, no matter how many times we talked about it, was personal to both of us.
- - - - - - -
That night we left Chibi-usa with the babysitter and went on our mission. Babysitter isn't really the word; the Agency always took care of her when we went out on assignment. Our employers supported our family and always helped us when needed. We left her watching Disney's 'Aladdin' with a good friend of Seiya's and two additional guards.
Dressed in black we crept into the security guard's room where three men were seated by the computer monitors. Two had fallen asleep while the third was straining to stay awake. Quietly Seiya moved behind to the man blinking himself awake, while I moved to the side. I nodded to Seiya, and he nodded back.
"Excuse me," I said smiling. Startled, the man grabbed for his gun, which was in the hands of my husband. Seiya emptied the gun and hit the guard on the head. The man fell hard to the ground and we tied him to the chair. Seiya grabbed one of the sleeping men and tied his arms behind his chair while I did the same to the other one sleeping. With the room to ourselves we changed a few commands in the computer, all the alarms had been deactivated. Leaving the room we entered a long hallway,
"You take the left, and I'll take the right," I said pointing in each direction respectively.
"Okay, watch your back, angel," he replied headed down his side of the hall.
"You too," I whispered back. I watched him head down his side of the hall, shook my head, and headed down my side.
I opened every door and looked for the one book or disk that would help. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew that Seiya was doing the same, only he was doing it twice as fast. I was going through various files in the fourth room, when I felt a strong arm wrap around my waist.
"All alone, Princess?"
Shit. Mamoru swung the chair around so that we were face-to-face; inches apart. I could feel the heat off his body. He had on a dark grayish suit that echoed his persona. Evil. Dark. Dangerous. The last time I saw Mamoru he had worn a similar suit. The gray was calm and soothing, but also held the potential for danger; for Mamoru danger was like a state of being. He was danger.
"And where is your dear husband tonight?" he asked as he grabbed my arm and led me out the door. The gun was all the argument I needed. I remained silent; pleading that Seiya had not been caught.
How did I not hear him? I should have been watching. I scolded myself. Will I ever see them again? Chibi-usa. Seiya.
My family was all I had and because of my carelessness I could lose them.
I was brought into a bright room with machines and computers situated around the walls. It looked like there was a camera in every room in the building linked to this room as well as the control room we were in before, something we had not counted on. I couldn't see Seiya on any of them, which worried me. There were other computers that held codes and dealings in different languages. We had no idea how big his operation had gotten over the years. He sat me down on a chair and tied my arms down; dropping a disk and a paper on my lap, he came close to my face, again,
"This is what you were looking for, Princess," he said. He looked like he was going say something more when the door burst open. Two guards came in with Seiya. His left cheek had been cut and a bruise was forming on his forehead. Mamoru locked eyes with Seiya and gave him a smug smile. He then turned to me and crouched down so he was eye-to-eye with me. Without making a sound he cupped my face with his hands and kissed me. The room had fallen silent and my attempts to resist were useless. He forced my mouth open and plunged his tongue into my mouth. His other hand came up to wrap around my neck, pulling me closer to him. He released his hold on me and turned back to my husband, without giving me a second glance. It was only then that I realized another man had been holding Seiya back. Finally, Mamoru moved away from me with a smile on his face.
"I can see why you married her, Old Friend," Mamoru laughed. Seiya's face burned red and his body shook with anger.
Oh God, I was in a state of shock, I was petrified. This isn't happening. We were supposed to come in, grab the disk, run to headquarters, drop off the disk and get home before Chibi-usa was asleep. That was the plan. We always had a plan and we always followed the plan.
The two guards kept their grip on Seiya, who had begun to resist again. The third had gone to stand on the side, ready to help. Mamoru laughed and walked towards the group. Seiya and Mamoru whispered while I strained to hear them. Seiya's anger was obvious. His face was strained and he struggled with more aggression, the only difference I could see in Mamoru was his jaw tighten. Then Mamoru punched Seiya in the gut and walked away. I felt my breath leave me as Seiya collapsed. Seiya was down, I was tied, and Mamoru was right in front of us. This was, almost, like last time. Dear God not again.
A man from one of the computers walked over to Mamoru and spoke to him in a hushed voice. Occasionally nodding and whispering back, Mamoru smiled and turned around. My attention was on Seiya who was still on the ground, courtesy of the two guards who were kicking him.
"Enough," Mamoru said, "This game has gone on too long. The screen." All eyes turned from what they were doing, to the screen in the center of the room. An uneasy feeling filled my gut, as the picture became clear. One of the Agency's buildings, the one with Chibi-usa in it came to view. Oh, God, no.
A man in black became visible and began talking in a lowered tone,
"Sir, we have the parcel. Everything is ready." My eyes were glued to the man on the screen.
"Excellent, wait till my command," Mamoru said as he typed a few codes into one of the computers, the man in black nodded and turned to face the building. After Mamoru finished a small black disk popped out of the computer disk drive, "Now."
.
The whole building exploded in a matter of seconds.
Seiya and I yelled out at the same time. I felt the tears streaming down. My heart stopped. My body froze. Mamoru ignored our cries.
He turned and picked up a gun from the table by him, his face was cold and emotionless. He turned to face Seiya and in a low monotone voice, he said, "Like I said, the game is over."
Everything was happening so fast, I wasn't sure what was really going on at that moment. Every other thought was of Chibi-Usa. Walking over to me Mamoru turned my face with the gun. The coldness barrel of the gun brought me back to the present. My body was shaking. Tears were streaming down my face. Please, God, help us. Somewhere deep down, I knew how this would end. I knew what was going to happen, he wouldn't hurt me. I couldn't stop it. He kissed me softly, barely touching me; then turned to Seiya, smiling. Seiya's eyes had lost all color, all life; they were pools of darkness. His eyes never left Mamoru's. As I looked, I realized that Seiya was different. I had never seen his eyes turn such a color. Mamoru walked so that he was in front of me; we were in a triangle. He threw a quick glance at me.
"Goodbye old friend," Mamoru whispered.
I heard myself scream, again. Seiya's body fell to the ground and a red pool quickly surrounded him. His breathing was thick and rapid; he slowly turned his face to me and slowly all the color drained. His eyes found mine, and for a brief instant, I had the feeling this was a nightmare. That this was not happening; no one's eyes could be so empty. Seiya couldn't die. But the pool around him had grown and his eyes slowly closed. This was no illusion. His body stopped moving. And my life was over.
My mind began to shut down. My whole life was gone. My family has been killed in a matter of moments. I didn't know what to do; I couldn't move. I had been straining against the bonds since Seiya had been brought in, and my arms had begun to bleed from the burns. The pain didn't register, but I felt blood slide down my arms. I was afraid to blink, afraid to breathe. I heard whispering at my side, but ignored it, until a single word caught my attention
"... Chibi-usa...." I'm not sure who had said her name or why, but I distinctly heard the word 'Chibi-usa' mentioned.
I turned and watched the man from the screen carrying my daughter. Her tear-streaked face was in the center of the screen clutching her stuffed cat tightly; her attention was off to the side or the screen. My senses came back in an instant. Suddenly the world was clear again. She looked into the screen and our eyes met. I heard her cry out for me as they threw her into the van.
There was talking and rushing around and suddenly I was alone. Mamoru had packed up everything and left...with my daughter. The room was now a vacant shadow of the chaos that had taken place moments before. The computers had been turned off and all the men had left. My mind was going in every direction, trying to pick up some information and register what had happened.
Seiya was gone.
Mamoru had killed him.
Chibi-usa was gone.
Mamoru had taken her.
I was tied down.
Mamoru had gotten away, again.
I don't know how long I sat there, staring at Seiya, sobbing, begging God for a miracle; when the other agents came in. Someone untied my arms and I flew to Seiya. Anyone in my way was pushed to the side. The disk and paper were thrown to the floor. I held onto him and wept. His blood had cooled down, but I still begged him to open his eyes.
We weren't ready. He knew. It was a trap. The realization hit me like a cold slap in the face. The room grew fuzzy, and cloudy, and the voices became muffled. It had been a trap. Everything had happened so fast. The pain in my arms shot up my body. My head had begun to pound sometime during the course of events. My body was sore and heavy.
Darkness overcame me.
- - - - - - -
The funeral was held a few days later. They had found the remains of the three guards in the building. I cried on and off all day, and afterwards I swore to not cry again.
Don't show emotions to your enemy, Seiya had told me.
I held his wedding ring close to my heart and felt the last tear fall. I walked around the house in a trance-like state. Different agents were 'assigned' to watch over me. They were all friends who, I know, would not have left me alone. I walked into Chibi-usa's room and saw a picture and a note on her pillow:
"' Lives can be erased, Princess, just look at Daddy.
Go to: Taiki Kou
507 Mylie Dr.
Namls Wotl, OK
Mr. Kou has been a wonderful babysitter, shame he will not be here in a
week.
Let a new game begin, Princess. The old one is dead.'"
The picture was of Chibi-usa at the picnic last month. My god, he was there. He had been so close to us, to her. New tears began to form; tears of anger and hate. I blinked them away and moved to her bed.
I stared at the picture and the note, waiting for something to happen. I second realization came slowly. He had been here. He had been in my house. With all the security we had someone had gotten inside my home, into my daughter's room. I went back to our bedroom and sat on Seiya's side of the bed and couldn't stop the tears. I laid down and breathed in his scent. On his pillow I could still feel him about to walk through the door. I had never felt so vulnerable. I stood and wiped my tears away and felt my body shaking. It was time. Mamoru's last line resounded though my mind, let a new game begin ... the only is dead. I grabbed my suitcase and packed as much as I could. If he wanted a game, we would play.
- - - - - - -
The next morning I went to my Supervisor and explained my situation. I told him my plans, and how I would do it with or without his help. He agreed, understanding my situation. He gave me access to Class 5 information, and anything else with Mamoru's name on it. I would work alone, provided Mamoru did not kill again, and all expenses would be put onto the agency. However if Mamoru took another life, another agent would be assigned to the case.
- - - - - - -
A week later we found all the details surrounding Taiki Kou, and his death. He seemed to be a normal citizen. He didn't have any outstanding tickets and had no criminal past that we knew of. He was a Literary major who worked at the local museum.
As I neared his house I knew I was too late. I felt my hope crash as the police cars and emergency vehicles flashed their lights. I parked my car and entered the house. Flashing my ID to two guards at the door. They directed my to go up the stairs. By the time I reached the top of the stairs, the scent of death was obvious. When I initially walked into the house, I smelt the normal house smells with the musk underneath the smells. But by now the musky dry smell of death took over the other scents.
I made my way to the room and braced myself at the door.
"Jesus," I whispered. No one could have prepared me for what I saw.