The sun reflected brightly around the room, and Kaoru yawned as she stretched and moved out of the bed. The alarm clock read 9:37. Kaoru stared in shock. Never before had she slept this late. Usually the smell of breakfast woke her up about 8:15. Slowly she made her way out of her room and down the hall to the kitchen. No one was there. Then she proceeded to John's room. She knocked lightly, and pushed the door open. No one was there either! Kaoru began to panic. She didn't like being alone, especially when bad people were chasing after her. Feet padding quickly across the carpeted floor, she ran to Sonya's room. The door was ajar, and she pushed it open. Her mouth dropped in shock, but soon spread into a wide smile. Like herself last night, Sonya-san was asleep in John's arms, who was laying back against the pillows and looking terribly comfortable. Quietly she tiptoed out of the room and shut the door.
"Well, it's about time," she whispered to herself, then walked back to the kitchen to make a bowl of cereal. She noticed the dishes in the sink, and chided the bad manners of John, leaving his mess for Sonya to clean up. So, pulling over a chair when she finished her cereal, she filled the sink with water and began to wipe the dishes. Then the phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Good morning, Kaoru. This is Jaxx."
"Hi, Jaxx-sama!"
"How are you doing today?"
"Good, and you?"
"Very good, thank you." Jaxx laughed at her so polite manners. "Is Sonya or Johnny there?"
"Yes, but they're both sleeping. Would you like me to wake them?"
"No need, sweets. I'll take it." Kaoru turned to see Johnny running his fingers through his hair and only wearing a pair of sweat pants as he walked over to pick up the phone.
"Oh, nevermind. Here's John-san now." She handed him the phone, and he rubbed her head.
"Forget about the dishes, go watch some TV." She grinned and ran out of the room. Kids. He put the phone to his ear. "Hey, what's up man?"
"Sleeping in today?" Johnny smiled.
"Yeah, you have no idea how much one little girl can wear you down." Jaxx laughed.
"That's why I left her to you guys. Listen, I received a phone call today, from Nise. She's apparently in hiding. Says she needs to talk to you urgently." Johnny's mouth curved down, and he closed his eyes.
"Is she all right?"
"She sounds fine, but scared. I think someone's coming after her. We tried to trace the call, but she hung up before we could complete it. Said she'd call again at 10 this morning, but she'll only talk to you." Johnny looked at the clock on the wall.
"Damn, that only gives me fifteen minutes!"
"Then run. Spekly said he'll come over to keep an eye on Kaoru for you, if Sonya wants to come."
"All right, man. Send him over. I'll be there as soon as I can." Johnny hung up then raced down the hall to his room. He threw on a t-shirt and shoes before grabbing his keys and running to the living room. Sonya walked out of the bathroom, and looked at him confused.
"What's wrong?" Kaoru looked up from the TV, her concentration on the Power Rangers completely gone.
"Jaxx called. Says Nise is trying to get in touch with me. She's gonna call, and I wanna be there for her." Sonya's look of doubt and distrust didn't go unnoticed by Johnny. He stepped closer and gently caressed her elbows. "Jaxx said she was upset and scared, and I think she's in trouble. It's possible these people who are after Kaoru are using her to get to either of us. I just don't want her caught up in this." His eyes pleaded with Sonya to believe him, and a moment later she nodded her head.
"Okay." Sonya took off her robe and threw it toward the couch as she turned to go to her room.
"Give me five minutes."
"Wait. We can't leave Kaoru here alone. Spekly is coming over to watch her. Once he gets here, then you come down to the station." He gave Kaoru a quick kiss on the head before grasping Sonya's chin to steal a kiss from her. "I'll see you soon." With that, he raced out the door and to his porche. Sonya looked out the window at him, and back to Kaoru who started giggling.
"What's so funny, munchkin?"
"John-san's in love," Kaoru sing-songed. Sonya blushed then softly tossed a couch pillow at the girl sprawled in front of the television. She squealed and ducked, then tossed one of her own at Sonya. A pillow fight ensued.
Nearly hitting ten or so pedestrians, Johnny pulled into the Frisco police station with a minute to spare. When he ran into the door, he was handed a cup of coffee from Jaxx as the phone rang. Johnny took a sip as Officer Dilly picked up the phone.
"Yes, one moment." He handed the phone to Jaxx.
"This is Major Jackson. Yes, yes he is." Jaxx looked at Johnny before handing over the phone. Johnny braced himself inwardly.
"Hello?"
"Johnny, oh thank God. I've never been so scared. I need your help, please, you have to save me. They're gonna kill me if they find where I am!" Johnny's heart sank at the tears in her trembling voice.
"Nise, Nise, babe, slow down. Who's after you?"
"I can't explain it, they're looking for me right now. Come down to the marina, dock 57, I'm hiding on a friend's yacht. Come quickly, please!" The phone went dead.
"Nise? Nise!" Johnny put the phone down. "Jaxx, call Sonya. Let her know I'm going down to the marina, dock 57. Nise is waiting for me there."
"No way, man, I'm coming with you on this. You ain't going alone." Another detective suddenly barged into the office.
"Major Briggs, sir. Balford's been spotted down on Freeliy and Wayside." Jaxx moved his eyes from the Detective to Johnny.
"Officer Dilly, Officer Howard, accompany Johnny to the marina. I'll call Sonya, she'll meet you there. Then I'll go after Balford." The others nodded in agreement, and the three were out the door while Jaxx phoned Sonya.
"Hello?" a warm voice answered.
"Hey, Spekly, Johnny's got a location on Nise and Balford's been spotted in town. Is Sonya there?"
"Yeah, she was just about to leave for the station."
"Scratch that. Johnny wants her at the marina, dock 57. You stay with Kaoru, you're the best one to protect her for right now."
"She couldn't be in better hands. I'll relay the message. Take care when going after Balford, he's a tricky bastard." Spekly hung up and his calm smile spread into an unsettling grin. He turned to face Sonya, who lay bound and gagged on the floor. Kaoru lay next to her, whimpering slightly.
"But he's not as tricky as I am." Sonya struggled, but her head wound was causing her to black out, and the last she saw was Spekly wrapping a blindfold over her eyes.
"We saw him enter that building," Moul whispered. "That was twenty minutes ago. We've been sitting here waiting for him to come out or for someone to show up, but nothin's happened yet.
"What is it?"
"It's an abandoned factory, used for textile back in the `50s." Dougard and Moul kneeled next to Jaxx, their guns in hand as Jaxx surveyed the area.
"Any particular reason he'd want to be in there?"
"It's apparently one of the buildings he wanted to buy, but the deal fell through because he was offered something better," Moul answered.
"Perhaps he's changed his mind."
"Or he's using it for his weekly drug meets," Dougard cut in.
"Well, let's go find out gentleman." Cautiously they approached the decaying building, and slipped in a side door they found unlocked. Jaxx moved his flashlight about the interior to find the place completely empty but for some large boxes and a few rusted machines.
"Where do you want us to go?" Dougard whispered. Jaxx pointed at him, then up to the top level of the room where there were several scaffoldings. Jaxx then pointed at Moul and directed him toward the far end, leading off to a vacant office. The three split, and Jaxx headed for the machinery. They were at least 40 years old, and were covered in spider webs. There was a steady dripping sound coming from a weaver, and Jaxx moved the beam of light over the different pipes. There, he saw a liquid pooling on the floor. He stepped closer, and pressed his fingers into it. Blood. A hand fell in front of his face, and he jumped back with a start. Hovering over him was a mutilated body pushed down on the various needles used for weaving all the way to where they protruded from his body. His face was covered in blood, and part of his skull was missing.
"Fuck me," he whispered. A gunshot turned his attention to the scaffolding above him, and he saw Dougard running after a dark shadow.
"Freeze, police!" Two more gunshots, a low grunt, and a body toppled over the railing to crash onto a crate below.
"Dougard!" Jaxx shouted, but received no reply. He ran over to the body, turned it over, and stared into Dougard's lifeless eyes. An axe was embedded into his chest. "Shit!" Gunfire erupted around him, and another scream reached his ears. Suddenly, the office down at the end of the room burst in flames.
"Moul!" Jaxx ran toward the flaming debris and watched in horror as a body ran out, covered in fire. He took a few steps then collapsed to the ground, writhing and screaming in pain. Jaxx felt something pierce his thigh, and he grunted as he dropped to the ground. He reached around and pulled a dart from his leg. A tranquilizer dart.
"Fuckin... ambush." Nearby, three people came into Jaxx's hazing view, and one knelt next to him.
"Fell right into our hands. How nice of you to work along so brilliantly." Balford chuckled and Jaxx felt himself being lifted up as he slipped into unconsciousness.
Johnny proceeded slowly to the dock, the two cops staying behind some crates and out of sight. The yacht was floating quietly in the water, and he swiftly climbed up the ladder and over the railing. His first place to check was the cabins, but he found nothing. A shallow clang caught his attention, and he opened the door to the engine room.
"Nise?" he called out softly as he moved down the stairs. "Nise, you down here?"
"Johnny?" There was a slight sniffle, and Johnny moved around a bunch of electrical cables to find the Australian beauty curled up in a ball, looking at him through strands of dark hair that covered her face. In a few strides, he was kneeling next to her and hugging her tightly.
"Hey, it's all right. Let's get you out of here." She nodded and they stood.
"Yes, please, before they find us."
"Who?"
"The Unmei no Akuma. They want something from me."
"What?" he asked as he began to climb the stairs, looking around carefully for anyone who may have followed either of them here.
"You." Johnny paused as he turned to face her, but was knocked down when something heavy smashed into his face. His head hit the metal steps, and his vision swam. He groaned and looked up into Nise's smiling face.
"And as their leader, I have to follow through with their wishes." Her arm rose above her head, and he watched a metal object glint for a second in her hand before it came cruising across his face again, and he sank into darkness.
"Oh, God." Pain. Bleeding. Immobile. Where? Fuck!
"I think someone's wakin' up." Bright... too bright. "Welcome back, bitch." Pain burst across her face as she was slapped hard. Sonya groaned into a cloth bound around her mouth. Next to her, someone whimpered. Kaoru! Sonya struggled a bit at her bonds, but they were too tight and she could feel the pieces of rope biting into her skin. Slowly, her vision came back to her; she looked up and noticed three people hovering above. They were standing with their backs to a light hanging from the ceiling, concealing their identities in shadow. The voices sounded familiar to her, though...
"What should we do with her now?" A gruff voice... slightly distorted... but then again, Sonya wasn't back to a complete conscious state.
"First, we get into the account. Once we're done with that, then we'll kill them all, and dump'em." A sexy voice, seductive, with a foreign accent. Despite her condition, Sonya recognized it immediately. Suddenly, there was a caress on her cheek from a soft hand; warm breath tickled her neck. "Or maybe we'll burn them... alive."
Nise... fucking bitch!
She stood up and snapped her fingers. "Hulia, Checko, get the brat. We've got a profit to earn."
"What of her?" That from the first dark figure... Holy shit. Balford?
"Keep her here. Perhaps Danny can keep her entertained... or is it the other way around?" Sonya's heart sank as she remembered what happened at Johnny's penthouse. How Spekly hit her from behind in the bedroom, knocking her half-conscious. Then he tied her up, and Kaoru as well. She was screaming. The phone call he made... they'd have to trace that rat bastard here. Please God, let them trace Spekly to Kaoru.
"Oh yeah, I think the two of us can stay amused." The third shadow chuckled, and Sonya knew it was Spekly. Apparently, he was a part of Balford's group... that fuck, he'd been playing them the whole time.
"And of your boy toy?" What? Oh, no. Nise's voice suddenly went hard, bitter, and cold.
"Since he seems to care for this bitch's..." Nise emphasized by kicking Sonya hard in the ribs. She rolled onto her side. "...Company more than mine, he can die with her. That fake has outlived his usefulness anyway." Sonya growled into the gag.
"Very well, boss." Boss? I thought Balford was- Sonya's thoughts left her as she was kicked again, this time in the lower stomach. A deep moan escaped her, and she tried to crawl away to protect herself, but she was yanked back by her hair.
"Oh, no, my sweet, sexy, and well endowed lady." A voice, Spekly's, whispered in her ear as his hand gently traced her breast. "You can't leave, after I've planned so much." Sonya's rage went into over load as his fingers kept moving about her body, making her sick and homicidal.
"She's a feisty one, Danny, so I bet she's the type of girl who likes it rough. Have fun with her. That's probably the only thing she's good for anyway." Suddenly, Sonya's gag was pulled away. "Right?" Nise chuckled into her face.
"You may be right, slut. Why else would you think he left you for me? Oh, that's right, cause he mentioned you were the lousiest lay he's ever had!" Nise glared with anger and back fisted her, causing Sonya's head to snap to the side with a painful slap. Despite the blood gushing from her split lip, Sonya smiled cruelly. `That struck a nerve.'
"Spekly, I don't care what you do to the fucking ho, just make sure it hurts, and that she stays alive. I've my own plans for this... skank. Balford, let's go. Time to collect our earnings." With that, the two walked away, and Sonya looked up at the dark shadow looming over her.
"And it's play time for me," Spekly whispered sickly in her ear. Struggling against her bonds left her wrist and ankles bleeding, but her panic began to rise as he pulled out a long knife... a sharp long knife. "Just lay still, Sonya baby, this will only hurt if you move."
"No," Sonya gasped. "No!" The blade came closer to her and began to cut away at her shirt. When she jumped trying to move away, she cut herself, and Sonya hissed in pain as her skin began to separate and ooze with blood.
"Tsk, tsk. Don't you listen?" Slowly, deliberately, Spekly cut her shirt open and left the scraps fall to he side. Spekly let out a low whistle as his eyes roamed over her luscious body, hard and toned. "You certainly are going to be the most enjoyable rape I've had so far." Sonya screamed again.
