Shinobi (A Katana Novel) (5 page)

7

W
e crept through a cow pasture, having abandoned our cars several miles away on one of the many country roads in Waterloo, Illinois. It was better we stayed off the roads and away from curious eyes who might wonder what the six of us were doing in the middle of the night with swords strapped to our backs.

The long grass in the field pulled at our legs, making shushing sounds as if warning us to remain hidden. As we approached, several cows glanced up at us, only to drop their heads disinterestedly back to the ground in search of clover after we’d passed.

Kim led our group, with me following closely behind. Q and Drew walked on either side of me while Braden and Michelle brought up the rear. Her frequent glances over her shoulder let me know she was doing her job, checking to see if anyone was sneaking up behind us. Even if they were, it was a long shot their attack would go undetected by my danger premonitions—a tingling that buzzed beneath my skin whenever an enemy lurked nearby.

Kim stopped just before the crest of a hill, dropped to the ground, and pointed to the dimly lit farmhouse just ahead—
the home of Sumi’s adoptive parents. We fell to a crouch beside him. He glanced at each of us, his eyes asking if we knew the seriousness of the mission ahead. We nodded, one after another.

If I hadn’t known better, as I found myself kneeling in a field under an open sky with a sword strapped to my back, I might have assumed I’d traveled back in time to my days as a samurai in Japan.

History has a way of repeating itself.

I shook my head, trying to dislodge Dr. Wendell’s words from my head. But I was too late—a shiver danced along my spine as the memories of our last battle, and ultimately our deaths, replayed in my mind. I clenched my eyes tight, as if I could somehow block out the moment my Yoshido fell to the ground or the feeling of my own dagger as it pierced my stomach.

Someone touched my shoulder, and I was snapped from my memory. I blinked several times before Kim came into focus in front of me, his eyes wide with alarm.

I nodded to let him know I was okay. This wasn’t Japan and we were prepared this time. No one was going to die.

I repeated the phrase over and over inside my head—
No one’s going to die
—hoping the more I thought it, the truer it would become.

Kim waved his hand and motioned us forward. At once, we were on the move. And even though more than 500 years had passed since our last battle, we moved as if we’d fought only yesterday. We were no longer a group of people but a single organism with many limbs, operating with one mind for a single purpose.

We reached the bottom of the hill and Kim raised his arm. Wordlessly, we fanned out.

Drew ran to the nearest tree, hoisted himself onto a limb, and disappeared within the branches. Michelle and Braden sprinted ahead. When they reached the side of the house, Braden crouched down. Michelle used his back to launch herself onto the roof of the porch, where she landed with barely a sound. Next, she reached over the side, grabbed Braden’s waiting hand, and hoisted him up beside her.

Meanwhile, Q and I followed Kim as he darted behind a large, silver truck in the driveway. I peered over the truck bed and watched as Braden and Michelle tiptoed around the roof, pausing long enough to glance inside each of the second-story windows. When they finished their circle, Michelle gave me a thumbs-up.

I crouched beside Q and Kim, who lay on their stomachs peering at the house from under the truck. “Michelle gave us the all clear,” I said.

Kim nodded. “All right. On to phase two.”

Q glanced between us. “What’s phase two?”

“It’s a surveillance mission,” Kim answered. “So now
we watch. We don’t want to alert Sumi to our presence, but at the same time, we need to know if she has her memories back—as well as her powers.”

I nodded and slid down to my belly next to Kim, trying not to flinch as a jagged-edged rock dug into my skin.

“How long do we wait like this?” Q hissed.

“As long as it takes,” Kim answered.

And I knew from past experience that “as long as it takes” translated into a very,
very,
long time. I propped my elbow on the ground and let my head fall against my hand. I’d always thought graduation would be a new beginning for me—no more following orders, no more being told what I
had
to do. It was supposed to be my opportunity to finally take charge of my life and decide for myself how I wanted to live.

Considering it hadn’t been quite twelve hours since I’d received my diploma and I was belly-down under a truck in the middle of the night—the whole taking charge of my life thing was not going so well.

The three of us remained silent as we watched. My body began to ache from not moving, but each time I tried to find a more comfortable position, the sharp edge of a rock dug into my skin. I cursed under my breath. How long had we been lying here anyway? An hour? Two?

I shifted again and this time a stone jutted against my hip bone, making spots of pain erupt behind my eyelids. I opened my mouth to tell Kim we should maybe find a new hiding place when an uneasy feeling crawled along my skin.

I snapped my mouth shut and tried to make sense of the feeling. It wasn’t exactly a danger premonition, but it definitely felt like a warning of some kind.

Kim looked at me. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m not sure.” I dug my fingers into the gravel to the dirt below, hoping the cold earth would balance the sense of unease spreading through my body. No such luck. “I can’t explain it. It’s not the electric jolt I get from a danger premonition, but … ” I licked my lips and motioned to the house. “Something’s not right.”

Kim followed my gaze, his eyes searching the windows. “We haven’t seen any movement.”

“I know.” So why was the creepy-crawly feeling growing more intense by the second? I shuddered as another wave rippled over me.

After several minutes of silence, Kim gave a sigh. “You’re not going to be satisfied until we check things out, are you?”

I gave him my most brilliant smile. “You really do have your memories back.”

He chuckled softly. “Fine. We’ll go in for a closer look. Just remember I’m still in charge of this mission. We are to remain unseen at all times, and if I say we run, we run. Got it?”

“Got it,” I said.

“Got it,” Q echoed.

Kim turned to him. “Listen Quentin … maybe you should stay here. It’s dangerous enough with just Rileigh and me going in—”

“Kim.” I placed a hand on his shoulder. “He goes. He’s our secret weapon. Besides, if Sumi has her powers back, Q’s the only one who can fight off her mind cont
rol. There’s no way we can leave him outside.”

Q leaned past Kim and smiled at me.

Kim sighed. “Fine. Just stay behind us and keep quiet.”

He nodded.

“All right. Let’s move.” Slowly Kim slithered out from under the truck. Q and I were quick to follow. Michelle and Braden watched from the roof as Kim signaled to them that
we were heading inside. They glanced at each other warily
before unsheathing their swords and backing into the shadows. Better to be prepared than not.

Another icy wave spiraled down my spine, and I clenched my teeth together to keep from crying out. The feeling grew stronger the closer we moved to the house—not a good sign.

The three of us tiptoed onto the porch and stood on
either
side of the door. Kim reached for the knob and, when it
refused
to turn, he motioned me forward. “I believe this is your
department?”

Right.
I closed my eyes and fell inside myself, to where my ki power sat nestled within my core. With a gentle nudge, I released a small amount from my fingertips. What felt like the rustle of a breeze swirled around my body, flipping the ends of my hair before blowing away. A second later, I heard the faint click of a lock being turned. Mentally I drew my ki back inside my body, feeling a slight tug in my stomach like a ball of yarn pulling tight, before closing it off. I opened my eyes with a smile. Controlling my ki had sure become a lot easier now that I no longer had Sumi screwing with my mind.

I reached past Kim and twisted the handle. The door swung open soundlessly. “After you.”

He unsheathed his sword, and I gave him a sideways glance as he stepped past me. “I thought you said this was an observation mission only.”

“We should still be cautious.”

“Agreed.” I unsheathed my own sword, relishing the feel of the eelskin-wrapped handle in my grasp. I glanced at Q. “Ready?”

He shrugged. “I don’t have a weapon.”

“You
are
a weapon,” I reminded him.

“Right.” He frowned and lifted his hands in the air like a witch about to conjure a spell. “Do I look just like a superhero?”

“Um … absolutely.” I grabbed his arm and together we followed Kim deeper into the foyer, where he stopped in front of a large wooden staircase. The house remained silent except for the ticking of a nearby grandfather clock.

“The bedrooms are upstairs,” Kim whispered.

“How do you know?”

The muscles in his jaw flexed. “Sumi,” he answered simply. He didn’t need to say more. Given the look of disgust on his face, I knew he was remembering the time he spent with her after she’d brainwashed him into being her boyfriend for several months. I’d never asked him about it—I hadn’t had the chance before he’d lost his memory. But now seeing him stand here clenching and unclenching his fist, I was pretty sure I didn’t want to know. But I also knew Kim had a nasty habit of letting his guilt get the best of him.

I placed a hand on his shoulder. “It doesn’t matter,” I whispered in his ear. “She had control of your mind—you weren’t yourself.”

He closed his eyes for a moment and nodded. “There are things we should probably talk about—but now’s not really the time.” He reopened his eyes. “Let’s do what we came to do.”

“Okay,” I agreed.

Kim inhaled sharply and started up the stairs before stopping suddenly. “Since Q is resistant to Sumi’s power, I’m going to trust you two to search her room. It’s the first door on the right. Being here … my emotions are unbalanced.” He glanced at his sword and tightened his grip. “I don’t really trust myself right now. Can you handle that?”

Kim rarely lost his cool like this. It stunned the words right out of me. I could only nod.

“Good. I’ll check her parents’ room at the end of the hall on the left. If they’re sleeping and all looks okay, we’ll head back outside and resume our watch until morning.”

I nodded again. I sincerely hoped we wouldn’t find anything.

“Let’s go.” Kim climbed to the top of the stairs, his cautious steps barely registering on the antique wood. Q and I followed closely behind. I motioned for Q to step exactly where I did to avoid any squeaky or loose boards. When we reached the top, Kim turned left and disappeared into the shadows of
the darkened hall. I grabbed Q’s arm and pulled him to the right. I stopped when we reached the white, paint-chipped door. The cold tremors twisting through my body amplified, forcing me to clench my teeth to keep them from chattering.

“Remember my trick with the shadows?” I whispered.

His eyes never left the door. “Where you turn us invisible?”

“Better safe than sorry.” I sheathed my sword and held out my hand. Q clasped it firmly within his own.

“Let’s do this,” he said, licking his lips.

I lifted our entwined hands to the shadow cast by the
door
and watched as they disappeared. “Here we go.” I stepped
against the door and pulled Q along with me until we’d vanished from sight. With my free hand, I slowly turned the doorknob and gently pushed the door open with my shoulder. My muscles twitched in anticipation. Whatever warning I was experiencing, I was about to find out what it was for.

I couldn’t see Q, but I could feel the heat from his palm
against my own. Together, we moved quietly into Sumi’s
room,
where I hoped to find her sleeping soundly on her bed.
But
that wasn’t the case. In fact, given her still-made bed, it
appeared she hadn’t been here all night. The buzzing sensation inside me remained.

“Huh.” I released Q’s hand, and he appeared beside me.

He lifted his hands in front of his face, examining both the fronts and backs. “I’ll never get used to that.”

Now that it was obvious there was no threat in Sumi’s
room, my knotted muscles gradually unwound. “Where
do
you think she is?” I stepped out of the shadow, revealing
myself next to her bed. I spun a small circle. For belonging to a seventeen-year-old girl, her room was unlike any teenager’s I’d ever been in. The blank walls held no pictures of friends or posters of bands. Ribbons and soccer trophies were absent from her shelves. The bookcases beside her bed contained only a few worn paperback novels, but nothing more that would let a visitor know a teenage girl lived here.

Her bed was made simply with a plain gray comforter. And stranger yet—especially for me—not a single stuffed animal sat against her pillow begging to be squished in a hug.

Q stepped beside me, repeatedly glancing at the door behind us. “This looks like the bedroom of a serial killer.”

He wasn’t far off.

I grabbed his arm, spun on my heels, and pulled him to the door. “C’mon.”

“Where are we going?”

“To see if Kim’s found anything. And then … ” I honestly didn’t know. If Sumi wasn’t here—that couldn’t be a good sign. What if she’d regained her memory and was out looking for a way to exact her revenge? Or worse, what if Whitley
had changed his mind and decided to go after Sumi alone? He wouldn’t have any qualms about killing her. And since she was Kim’s inyodo, any attempt on her life put Kim in grave danger.