Better Than Gold || Daisuke Kambe

[3]

Yotsuki Himari

I followed the guy into a sleek black car, defeated and shocked. I had no excuses anymore but to follow with his demands. We got into his car and my mind almost immediately shut down when my eyes fell onto the interior.

The furnishing inside was too luxurious. "You're telling me to get in and soil the leather seats?!" I asked, shocked that he even thought of letting me inside this one of a kind car.

"I have better cars. This is merely a penny to me." He deadpanned. "Get in."

I felt my nose flare at his annoying attitude. I also felt my mouth drop, this guy is simply despicable. But I can't open my mouth to refute and fucking rebuke him because just a while ago, upon his statement, "HEUSC, transfer twice the amount she wants." Was all he said when my phone notified me that 5 million yen was transferred to my bank account.

I was only joking when I said I wanted 2 million and 5 hundred yen. Now I had 5 million yen on my bank account. My conscience wouldn't let me just accept it but he wouldn't take it back either!

I sat quietly on the passenger seat, not moving too much, afraid that I will soil the seats. Or that my worn out shoes would dirty the flooring. "Are we there yet?" I asked. I can't wait to get out of this car! It feels like I'm breathing in a million dollar oxygen. What a waste that would be.

Help me...

Pleaseee...

I- I can't breathe...

H-help.

My eyes widened and I whipped my head to look at the back seat. There it was, the same teen girl I saw in my car a while ago. She sat with a sad smile but I could hear her crying. Now an idea was forming in my head.

"Kambe-san, what exactly do you need my help for?" I asked, turning to him.

"The series of disappearance of college girls." Was all he said for me to understand everything.

Names flooded inside my head and vivid pictures of their dismembered bodies with plastics on their heads made my insides churn. I could feel my eyes start to water, not because I felt bad but because I could almost sense the putrid smell of decaying bodies.

"Nazuki Erina... Koichi Inoue... Satsuki Kaori... Hirada Aoi.... And 10 other girls..." I whispered.

Suddenly, the car stopped and we were right in front of the Japanese Police Headquarters. I looked at the man beside me with a horrified expression but he stared at me with a look I didn't understand.

Bile rised up to my throat and before I could stop myself, I vomited all over the luxurious interior that I never even wanted to step foot in. "Urgh!" I cried.

I quickly pushed the door open and dropped onto the hard ground. Not only did I feel sick to the guts, I also felt embarrassed and worried to the bones! No doubt, the payment fee for the cleaning of the car will be worth my entire bank account even with the five million he transferred.

A cough came from beside me. "HEUSC... Uh.. get my car cleaned. Thoroughly." He mumbled.

"Kambe, what is this?!" A brown haired boy asked, as he kneeled beside me and pushed my hair back, lending me a handkerchief. "Are you alright?" He asked me, helping me up.

"I... I don't want any part of this..." I whispered, out of energy.

"Miss, calm down... For now, let's get you comfortable inside." The young gentleman, smiled calmly at me. He supported me all the way, to the elevator and until we reached a very ... Run down room. That is, their office.

"Oh my, you look pale, would you like some tea to make you feel better?" A girl with pink hair asked as she helped me settle on a comfortable chair. "This helps ease anxiety." She smiled, placing a cup of tea in front of me.

Meanwhile, the same brown haired boy sat across from me. "Yotsuki-san, it's a bit late for introductions but my name is Haru Kato." He smiled warmly.

Right of the bat I already feel better. His energy was bright and very warm. I could tell he is a very good person. He cares about everyone, even strangers. He has this healing aura and it made me feel better. Whereas, Kambe-san was cold and almost like a frost. His energy, if I had to describe it, was like a stale bread... He drained my energy amd that was probably why I freaked out inside the car.

"Anyway, are you alright? Are you sick?" He asked.

"Oh no. I'm feeling a lot better now, thanks to you guys." I said, smiling to him and the very calm and comforting pink haired girl.

"If you're alright now, look at this." The black-haired man said. He looked irritated and impatient, it was clear he didn't care about my wellbeing and just wanted to get the investigation over with.

When my eyes landed on the photos he laid beside me, those were the pictures of the girls I saw in my vision. Those healthy, beautiful young ladies... "Oi! Kambe!" Kato-kun said, anger in his voice and he snatched the photos away quickly.

"Kato-kun... It's alright... I'm alright." I smiled, grabbing the pictures from his hands. He looked at me with concern but I smiled.

When Kambe-san saw that I was more stable now, he sat in front of me and laid out various documents. He started briefing me on the case. Apparently, girls mostly college students were going missing all over Tokyo. They showed me pictures of so much girls, mostly had short hair and some had long hair. They were all pretty. "I heard you solved a case a long time ago?" He asked once more.

"... I got lucky." I said.

Very lucky... I didn't have to look at all the documents prepared by the investigators because I already have dates, names echoing inside my mind. So similar like what happened before.

I found myself frown, again, I was being dragged to something I didn't want anything to do with.
"Alright... I'll help but I don't need your payment."