Blood Oaths

by Stein Willard

  “Hiro, over here,” called a voice and two more shadows appeared. Purcell sighed and stepped forward.

  “Don’t shoot, I’m Tanaka’s guest,” he said quickly when the three shadows turned to him.

  The man called Hiro stepped closer. “You’re the American? The boss wondered what happened to you. Follow me.”

  Purcell did not wait to be invited twice. It was heartening to hear that Tanaka had thought of his safety. Maybe he was too hasty in setting the man up with the other bosses. He made a silent promise to undo what he had done if they survived this night.

  They took a turn to the left and crossed a small courtyard. Tanaka’s office was on the opposite end. He was eager to get out of this open place and hurried past the man before him. They were a few steps away from the office when an explosion rang out. Purcell gasped as he was thrown to the ground.

  +++

  Lulu had carefully stalked the Tanaka boss until she cornered him and his personal guards in the weapons room adjacent to the Japanese crime lord’s office. From where she hid behind her pillar opposite the open door, she could see into the room. Under the light of a small solar lamp, the men hastily stocked up on ammunition. It was obvious to her that they meant to break out of the compound with guns blazing.

  There was no escaping her. Tanaka was going to die.

  Two men stood guard outside. Even if she lured them away from the doorway, getting to them was going to be quite a feat. Unlike the others feeling their way around in the dark, these guys wore night vision goggles. She had to find a way to get to Tanaka, before more men joined the group. The horizon was showing faint signs of daybreak and she wanted to be out of here before that happened. She had always prided herself on being ingenious when she took out targets, but this situation did not ask for finesse.

  “Daisuke Tanaka!”

  A deathly silence met her call. When she peered around the column again, she smiled. They were just where she wanted them. The idiots immediately circled around their boss. She unclipped the last grenade from her belt. She pulled the pin and stepped out of her hiding place. Momentarily stunned by her sudden appearance and proximity, the men hesitated. That moment of indecision was their downfall. Lulu threw the grenade into the room and ducked for cover. She heard the men’s shouts of fear and the next moment the earth shook. The powerful explosion caused the pillars in the courtyard to crack and crumble to the ground.

  +++

  Bradley stirred slowly. His eyes flickered open and he groaned. His body ached from being thrown onto the cobblestone floor. His head hurt and his ears were ringing from the loud explosion. He sat up carefully and gaped at the destruction around him. The courtyard looked like a battlefield. Body parts were strewn among crumbled marble pillars and crushed flowerpots. He turned to face the men wondering why none of them rushed to their boss’s aid. But there was no one behind him…or rather anyone standing for that matter. He made out three dark shapes lying on the floor. Bradley Purcell was terrified. So terrified, in fact, that he felt something warm trickle down his leg.

  “Was it worth it?”

  He jumped at the unexpected voice. He climbed to his feet as he looked around nervously. The voice sounded distinctly American. “Who are you and what do you want with me?”

  There was short silence. “I want you dead.”

  The voice sounded behind him and he turned around. No one was there.

  “But…but I did nothing to you. I don’t even know you.”

  “Oh, but you do, Bradley,” came the soft reply.

  When he heard his name, Bradley knew that his number was up. This was personal. He was the target and he was not going to leave here alive. A dark shape stepped out from behind a pillar. He took a step back as the form moved closer. The person came to a stop a few feet from him.

  “I asked you if it was worth selling out your country to hide your little underhanded dealings.”

  Bradley swallowed hard. How did this person know about that? The only other person who would know of this was Tanaka. It did not make sense at all. Tanaka had too much to gain to sell him out. Did the US government get wind of his plan and send someone? He lifted a shaky hand and held it out to the person.

  “Look, I think there’s a misunderstanding.” He smiled weakly. “I’m being framed.” The person was quiet for a long while before he reached behind him. Bradley shuddered at what he knew was to come. “Look…Please…Let’s talk about this first. I’m sure we can come to an arrangement.”

  “You want me to give you a chance where you gave me none? You bastard!” The person held up a gun. “You were willing to sacrifice me and your country, so you could appease your Yakuza buddies. On top of that, you used my partner as bait.”

  Hearing that, Bradley felt his eyes well up. If that was who he thought it was, then he was already dead. No one had met this woman and lived. He fell to his knees. This was it.

  +++

  Manu cocked the gun and without batting an eyelid, pulled the trigger. She felt a soft splatter against her pant leg. It was finally over. She looked away from the bloodied remains of Bradley Purcell and scanned the courtyard. Lulu should be somewhere here. As if she had conjured her up, Lulu came walking toward her. Now that everything was settled and there were no threats to their lives anymore, what did it mean for the two of them? She squinted and could make out the shape of a gun in Lulu’s hands.

  “Tanaka?”

  Lulu spread her arms. “He’s all over the place.” She pointed at the body of Purcell. “I see you got your guy, too.”

  “Yes.”

  Silence.

  “What now?” Manu asked as she noticed the light tightening of Lulu’s fingers around her gun.

  “What do you want to do?” Lulu asked as she held Manu’s gaze. The dark eyes were intense.

  Silence.

  Maybe all the antagonism they had felt toward each other would come to an end. Here and now. Manu’s grip tightened on her gun. “Go home?”

  “Sounds like a good idea. There are still ninjas roaming around.”

  It was her training that kept Manu from sighing in relief. She was in no mood to kill the wife of a woman she had come to like.

  “Lead the way, Blade.”

  PART 5

  Choko had a massive headache where she lay under the duvet. She sniffed as she pressed her nose into the pillow where Lulu’s head had rested a few hours before. Choko had awakened earlier and reaching out for Lulu, had found her wife’s side of the bed empty. From the coolness of the pillow, it was obvious that Lulu had already left hours ago. Knowing where her wife had gone, the tears had begun. She had wanted to hold her and kiss her before she left. What if she didn’t return? Would she be able to continue without Lulu? Fresh tears began to fall as she clutched the pillow to her.

  “Is there any chance that I could get my pillow back, aiko?”

  Choko’s breath hitched and she lifted her head. Could it be? “Lulu?”

  “Were you expecting someone else, wife?”

  Choko sat up. Calmly, as if she had never left, Lulu sat at the foot of the bed. Her hair was damp and she was dressed casually in blue jeans and a tight white t-shirt. To Choko she looked like she had just walked right out of her dreams. She crawled over to her wife and threw her arms around her.

  “You’re okay.” She pulled back and let her eyes roam over Lulu’s body. “At least you look okay.”

  “I am. But I was hoping to catch a few hours of sleep before we entertain our guests again. I thought I’d cook them lunch and then we can take them out for dinner to that new sushi restaurant.”

  Looking closely, Choko could see exhaustion etched on her wife’s face. She pulled Lulu with her as they both crawled towards the centre of the bed. “I will hold you while you sleep. But first…” She took Lulu’s lips in a gentle kiss. “I want you to know that I love you,”

  The dark eyes softened. “And I love you.”

  Choko leaned over again and planted a kiss on each of
Lulu’s eyes. “Let all the bad visions be gone from your mind and may you have peaceful dreams.”

  With the ritual complete, they curled into each other’s arms. Lulu was asleep almost immediately.

  +++

  Manu carefully lifted the duvet and slid in next to her slumbering fiancé. She was glad to find the blonde asleep, knowing than she was going to give her an earful for having snuck off like a thief. She pulled the duvet up to her neck and sighed softly. The quick shower at Lulu’s safe house had helped relieve the aches and scratches. Now all she was looking forward to was a few hours of sleep, then she would be completely restored.

  She closed her eyes. Almost immediately, she felt herself being pulled into the gentle quiet darkness of sleep.

  “Oh…oh…oh…!”

  Manu’s eyes shot open again. She felt the bed shift. She was rudely pushed onto her back. Logan’s eyes were wild and her hair even wilder as she stared down at Manu. The blonde stared at her without saying anything.

  “Are you okay, Lo?”

  “No, I’m not.”

  Manu slowly sat up. “What is it? Tell me.”

  Logan dropped her face in her hands. Manu was getting worried the longer the blonde sat like that. She heaved herself up until she was leaning against the headboard. She gently pried Logan’s hands from her face. When she saw the tears on the beautiful face, she angled her body, so she could lift Logan onto her lap. She pressed a soft kiss on the fragrant hair.

  “Please tell me what’s wrong so I can make it right, babe,” she pleaded softly. Logan pressed into her, but still did not say anything. Manu decided not to press and waited until Logan had pulled herself together.

  “I’m scared, Manu.” There was desperation in Logan’s voice. “I…I’ve tried to be strong, but…but I can’t anymore.”

  Manu cocked her head. “I’m afraid I don’t understand what you’re trying to say.”

  Logan lifted her head and Manu was stunned by the anguish on the blonde’s face. “I’m not sure I can let you go through with this. I know that I have no right to ask this of you and that you’ve promised to help Choko. But…but…”

  “Logan.”

  “No, let me finish. I might not have the guts to say it again. I don’t want you to risk your life. I mean we can go someplace else. I can run the office from anywhere in the world. Technology allows us nowadays to…”

  “Listen to me, Logan.”

  Logan looked at her pleadingly. “Please let me finish, Manu. I need to get this off my chest.”

  Manu gave Logan a searching look, before she gently pushed Logan’s hair out of her face. “But you don’t need to. We already took care of things.”

  Logan blinked in surprise. “But…Wait, are you saying you and Lulu…you already…?”

  Manu nodded. “We just returned a few minutes ago.”

  “But how? You were asleep next to me.”

  “Look, don’t be angry, okay. We left about four hours ago while you were both asleep.” Manu said slowly, inwardly waiting for the explosion to come.

  “And Purcell?”

  Manu pursed her lips. She did not like to draw Logan into this part of her life. “He’s been taken care of.”

  “Is he dead? Did you kill him?”

  Manu debated on whether to answer the question. In the end, she remembered her promise to Logan that she would not hold anything back from her again. She averted her eyes as she nodded curtly. The room was quiet for a moment. Manu kept her gaze averted. She stiffened slightly when she felt a soft touch on her cheek.

  “Are you okay?”

  Manu almost laughed. Am I okay? She should be asking Logan that question and not the other way around. She lifted her head and looked into Logan eyes, searching them for disgust, fear…anything. Instead she only found concern.

  “I’m fine, Lo. Thank you for asking.”

  Logan gave her a small smile. “I knew what was going to happen and I knew why you had to do it. You don’t have to worry about that.”

  Manu felt the air she’d been holding in, softly escape her lips. “Thank you.”

  Logan slipped her arms around Manu’s shoulders and squeezed. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too,” Manu whispered. Her voice was heavy with emotion. “Will you hold me while I sleep? I’m incredibly tired.”

  Logan slipped off Manu’s lap and laid back again under the covers. “I will hold you for as long as you like. Come, put your head on my chest.” Manu did as she was told and snuggled deeper into Logan’s sweet-smelling body. “You’re my hero, Emmanuelle Mistral.”

  Manu grunted softly. Surrounded by love and acceptance, she quickly slipped into dreamland.

  +++

  “What are you doing up so early?”

  Choko almost jumped out of her skin at the sound of Logan’s voice. She turned to find Logan smiling at her apologetically.

  “It’s almost noon. I was thinking about preparing lunch for when you woke up.”

  Logan glanced at the clock on the microwave. “Is it so late already? Let me help you.”

  The petite Japanese woman nodded. “Lulu’s the chef in the house. I’m nowhere near as good as her.”

  “Not to worry. Manu has taught me a thing or two about cooking. Between the two of us I’m sure we can come up with something edible.” She winked at Choko. “Okay, now let’s see what we have in the fridge. Choko looked on as the tall American rummaged through the fridge. She was surprised by how comfortable she felt in the woman’s presence. It was hard to believe that they had only met twelve hours ago. The blonde head turned suddenly and sharp blue eyes met hers. The American straightened.

  “Are you okay, Choko?” There was genuine concern in the woman’s voice. “Do you want me to get Lulu?”

  Choko quickly shook her head. “I’m fine, Logan.” She folded her hands in her lap. “It’s rather embarrassing, but I was simply thinking how strange it was that I feel so comfortable with you. We barely know each other.” She felt a slow heat moving up her neck. Choko always struggled to make friends. She was too shy, in the first place and then there was her Yakuza heritage.

  A warm smile came over the American’s face. “I’m not that surprised. There are a lot of similarities here.” Logan took the chair opposite from her. “We love the same kind of women and we have been through the same experience last night. But the most important thing is that you are a wonderful woman and I think I wouldn’t mind calling you a friend.”

  Choko returned Logan’s warm smile. “You’re right. I would love to call you friend too.” She came to her feet. “Let me get you some tea. Would you like that?”

  “If we’re going to be friends, then I would suggest you stop treating me like a guest. I feel comfortable here. Let me get the tea.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes, I’m sure,” Logan answered as she poured herself some tea. “So, what are we going to do about lunch?”

  “Well,” Choko worried her lower lip between her teeth. “We could always call the main house and have them send something over. The family employs one of the most celebrated chefs in the country.”

  Logan gave her a sly smile. “That sounds like a great plan.”

  “Good. What are you in the mood for?”

  “I don’t know. You choose. In the meantime, I will go see if Manu’s up. Is it okay if I take her some coffee?”

  “Of course. Lulu likes to drink coffee when she works late and I always make sure there’s a pot waiting for when she wakes up.” Choko expertly measured the beans and got the machine going. “It will not be long. I will call the main house now.”

  +++

  Logan watched at the diminutive woman left the kitchen. She found herself smiling. Choko was such a contrast to what she had expected. It was obvious that she came from money-- lots of money, but the woman was very easy-going. She even dressed conservatively as opposed to her more flamboyant partner. Sadness came over her when she thought of the woman’s illness, robbing
her of her smile. She prayed it was not anything too serious. She could see Choko as a permanent fixture in her life. The woman had a calming effect on people around her. Last night she could see how Manu had gone out of her way to make the smaller woman feel at ease.

  Her thoughts got stuck on the tall brunette she had left sleeping in the guest room. The smile returned to her face. Was it possible to keep on falling in love with the same person over and over again? She simply could not get over how lucky she was to have found Manu. She still felt a twinge of guilt for having been such an idiot before. What would she have done had Manu refused to give her a second chance? She finished her tea and grabbed an apple from the fruit display. Thinking about Manu had her yearning for the woman’s nearness.

  The blinds were drawn, casting the room in darkness. From the door Logan could make out the hump in the bed. Shedding her gown, she slid in next to Manu and spooned her.

  “Hi, baby.”

  Logan lifted her head off the pillow to peer at Manu’s face, pleasantly surprised to find her fiancé awake. With gentle hands, she rolled Manu onto her back and looked down into alert amber eyes. Those were not the eyes of someone who had just woken up.

  “How do you feel?”

  Manu stifled a yawn and stretched her tall frame. A soft moan escaped her lips as Manu’s t-shirt stretched over her breasts. She looked away only to find Manu’s amused gaze.