(Shayla's POV)

Two days had passed since I ran out of the hospital, and I threw myself into my work. I hadn't heard from Tennoji at all, though one of the guys said he might be released after another day or so.

We traced the bullets back to Daniel, so that essentially was a dead end. We did find out Roarke was in Japan, most likely already recruited by Daniel. The past couple times me and Asano had gone by his house, no one was home. We would keep trying though.

Asano was different to work with to say the least. He was very quiet, only talking when needed, and seemed to only talk to me when he had to. It really pissed me off, until Eiki finally explained that Asano, wasn't very fond of women, due to something with his past. Though Asano never outright said he didn't like me because I was a woman, he never talked to me after we left the station.

Though oddly enough, it was currently me and him up on the roof, taking a break. He did seem to warm up to me a little, and after Eiki explained, I tried not to get so aggravated anymore.

"You were on the streets when you were seven?" He asked suddenly, turning his light grey eyes on me.

Though the question surprised me, at least he was talking to me now. "Yes... My parents abandoned me when I was very young... Neither of them seemed to be ready to be parents.. And they always seemed to be arguing anyway." I admitted, shrugging it off.

He nodded, not saying anything for a moment, absorbing what I had told him. A few more minutes passed, before he spoke again. "Eiki told you??" He asked quietly, and though it took me a minute to know what he was talking about, I nodded.

"He didn't go into detail though." I assured him, and he sighed, before facing me again.

"My mom... She ran off, completely abandoning us." He said. This, shed some light about how he felt about women. How could he trust any, when the one he trusted the most, abandoned him, and left him alone with his father? "She never even tried to find me later, never bothered getting in contact. She didn't want to be a mother." He added, only reinforcing my thoughts. Of course, after that, he wouldn't trust anyone, let alone a woman. "My dad tried, but he couldn't take care of me on his own.. So in the end, he left me at an orphanage too. He hasn't contacted me neither, or never bothered to try to find me." He finished, sounding slightly bitter at the end.

"I'm sorry Asano." I apologized, placing my hand on his arm. His normally half closed eyes widened, but he didn't shake me off, but looked slightly puzzled instead. "Thank you for sharing.. But why??" I asked, curious why he decided to share with me.

He looked away, shrugging, looking out towards the city. "I know what it's like to be abandoned.. And to have to work to survive.." He calmly states, and I look at him, studying him. I assumed he hated me, but maybe out of all of them, he understood the most. That need to survive, and to do the best you can, when you're left all alone.

"You did what you had to do to survive right? Then no one here should have a problem with that." He explained further, though was still slightly vague. I think this was his odd way of saying, that he accepted me, after what I told them, and that the others shouldn't look any differently at me, though I wasn't sure.

"Tennoji doesn't feel that way.. Or feel as accepting." I blurted out, not meaning to. He turned around at my words, his light grey eyes studying my face, before nodding, even though I wasn't sure what he was nodding or agreeing to.

"It's because of his sister Yuko. Give him time." He adds, after a moment.

I shook my head no, feeling my eyes starting to water all over again, as I remember what happened at the hospital. "He hates me. I might have to request a transfer, or switch partners or something."

"I think transferring is a bit drastic, but wait and see, give him some time. If he still doesn't come around, I'll ask Kirisawa, if you can become my partner permanently then." He said, smiling slightly, much to my surprise.

I felt my face heat up, and my eyes widen in my surprise. "I thought you didn't like me!" I blurted, awkwardly, though he chuckled at my words, surprising me yet again.

"It was never that. I've always felt awkward with women, and don't particularly like being around them... But I also never had to work with one before. You made me realize maybe it's not so bad, and not all women are the same. Though I know I shouldn't have assumed that to begin with..."

I smiled in response, laughing a little myself. This was the most I had ever heard Asano talk. I liked it. He was kinda funny when he wanted to be.

"These past few days haven't been as bad as I thought they would be. You work hard, and you're determined. You make a good partner." He added, only flustering me even more. It was odd, from him only saying a few words to me, to now, entire conversations. It was a good thing, but it was still shocking. "You're not one for quiet though huh?" He asked, laughing. "That must have been an adjustment.. Going from Tennoji to me. I have to give it to you though, once you picked up on that I wasn't going to talk much, you quietly went about what you needed to do."

"I was used to his constant chatter, though I personally am not one for quiet, no. If I have to be, I can be though." I admit, and he smiles slightly, before heading back inside.

I follow him back inside, as we navigate our way back downstairs, finally back to the second unit office. That had to be one of the most surprising breaks for me since I'd been here, only because that was the most I had ever heard Asano speak. We headed for Asano's desk, passing Kyobashi, who was typing away, and Hanai, who was making calls, Trying to track down Roarke. Kirisawa was reading some files, and Eiki had left before we went on break, saying there was something he needed to take care of, and he had yet to return.

              My cell phone starts ringing, much to my surprise. I ignore it, but whoever it is, they call right back, and it's a number I don't recognize. "Who is it?" Kirisawa asks, glancing my way.

              "I don't recognize the number.. Hang on." I answer it, but put it on speaker phone. Worse case I just click off speaker phone, I think, as I walk towards the middle of the room.

               "Shay." One word, thats all it takes, and I shiver slightly. It was my adopted fathers voice, though it shouldn't have been.

               Before I can even respond, there's a ruffling noise, before someone else takes the phone. "Well wasn't that a heartwarming reunion. You haven't spoke in how long? Years?" It was Daniels voice this time, mocking me.

            Before I respond, Kyobashi motions for me to go over by his desk, and I start heading his way, as I respond. "What do you want Daniel?" I growl, wondering why the fuck he bothered to call me, and why the hell my adopted father was out of jail.

            I reach Kyobashi's desk, and as our resident hacker of our group, he plugs my phone in, trying to trace the call, on his computer, plus I'm sure he was trying to hack into something else as well, knowing him. "Tsk is that any way to talk to your best friend?" Daniel asks, amused.

               "What do you want? And why the fuck is Ethan out of jail, and with you?" I hiss, pissed off already. The leader of the blood dragons was a cold, cruel bastard. I'd even go as far to say that he had no soul.

"Still feisty as ever. And we broke him out of course." Daniel replied, like it was the most casual thing in the world, that he had helped break someone out of jail.

"No shit Sherlock, no cop in their right mind would let that bastard out of jail. I meant why." I growled, wishing they would just get to the point. I knew I had to keep them talking though, so Kyobashi could trace the call.

"Tell your hacker to not even bother tracing the call." He said, the boredom clear in his voice, like we were too predictable or something. "I'll send you our location, but you have to come alone. No cops, or deal's off."

"What deal? What the fuck?"

"A trade. We want you to come alone, in exchange we will let the other New York cop go.. What's his name again?" My blood ran cold, as I look at the other members of the second unit, starting to panic. "Oh right. Eiki Yachigusa."

"You're a lying sack of shit!" I yell, mad. Did they really have Eiki? I couldn't be sure. But I knew he wasn't at the office.

"He isn't at the station with you is he?" He says, clearly amused, and knew he had me.

"I want to talk to him." I ask, hoping this will prove it. I watch Kyobashi type away on his computer, still trying to trace it anyway, regardless of what Daniel said.

"Sorry. No dice. Come alone, I'll text you where. You don't want to risk one of your own do you?" He asked, before hanging up, ending the call.

"Fuck!" I yell, slamming my fist down on Kyobashi's desk, as he unplugs my phone.

"Whoever they have is good, they put up fake signals, it's hard to trace to an exact location. The location kept bouncing around, redirecting me." Kyobashi told us, not sounding to happy, as he frowned slightly.

My phone buzzed, and a glance shows me its a text, with an odd address, written across the screen. "We have to calm down, we don't know if they have Eiki." Kirisawa says, trying to be the voice of logic.

"I'll give him a call, see if he picks up." Hanai offers, as he starts dialing his cell phone.

"Where the fuck is this?" I ask out loud, and Asano leans over my shoulder, looking.

"That's on the same wharf where the first explosion happened, just a different building." Asano informs me, and I nod.

"He's not answering. It's going straight to voicemail." Hanai tells us, looking slightly worried himself now.

"Son of a bitch. Alright." I exclaim, throwing my hands up in exasperation and I turn around, heading for the door.

"Slaven wait. We don't know if they really have him, and you can't expect us to let you go alone." Kirisawa says sharply, narrowing his eyes at me.

"No. I'm not risking Eiki's life. Regardless, it's a risk im willing to take, going in alone. I won't risk his life bringing you." I say, taking another step towards the door.

"It could be a trap." Hanai says, and I shrug.

"Only one way to find out. Don't follow me." I tell them, sprinting for the door, as shouts of protest ring out behind me, as I make a run for it, leaving the building, determined to head to the address, determined to get Eiki out.

(Eiki's POV)

~ A few hours earlier ~

            It had been a few days since Yutaka had been admitted into the hospital. Shay seemed more quiet then usual, though I knew part of that was due to her working with Asano, I knew it was more than that. She hadn't heard from Tennoji at all, though she had mentioned paying him a visit, she didn't say how it went. From her demeanor, I'm guessing not so well. Damn.

              I had left the station not too long ago, telling Kirisawa I had something to take care of. It wasn't entirely true, I was going to see Tennoji. I was going to find out what the hell he did to upset her, though I was pretty sure I already knew.

              I stepped out of the subway, frustrated as I made my way to the hospital. On one hand, I understood that he would over react, because of his sister, and how she was hurt. He also didn't know the full story like I did, but still. On the other, I felt like a big brother, needing to go beat someone's ass for hurting their sister. Though Shay needed no one to fight her battles, and was fully capable on her own, this was something I wanted to do.

             I at least, needed to find out what was said, and talk to him. This was the first time since leaving that place, that Shay had felt anything like this for someone. I mean, sure we cared about each other, but that was different, like siblings. A long time ago, she had told me she felt like she didn't deserve love, or the second chance she had been given. She hated herself for the things she had done, and felt she didn't deserve happiness.

            I had seen the difference in her, how happy Yutaka made her. I wanted that for her. I wanted her to be happy, even if she felt like she didn't deserve it, I felt she did. My phone buzzed, but I ignored it, shutting my phone off as I made my way to the hospital, checking at the reception desk which room he was in, before making my way there.

             The door to his room was open, and I didn't even bother knocking as I went in. He looked surprised to say the least, when he saw it was me. "Shouldn't you be at work?" He asked coolly, glancing out the window in his room.

              "I'm going back in a bit. I needed to see you." I told him, and that got his attention, turning around to face me.

              "Shoot. What do ya need?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at me. He wasn't his usual playful self, and it made me wonder if maybe he cared for her, just as much as she did for him.

             "What did you say to her? I know she was here. What happened? She hasn't been herself for a few days now. What did you do?" I ask harshly, not able to keep the edge out of my tone. He flinched at my words, wincing, before running a hand back through his  red messy hair, before answering.

               "She told me. So I told her to leave." He told me quietly, not meeting my gaze.

               "How could you do that." I snapped, walking over to the side of his bed.

               "I could only think of what happened with Yuko when she told me okay! It was all I could think, that maybe she hurt someone like Yuko, and I snapped."

                "You didn't even hear the full story. She was seven! Seven years old when she was out on the streets, abandoned! He parents didn't want her. So she trusted someone she shouldn't have. She was a child Yutaka. How could you blame her, for wanting a home, somewhere to belong? When someone offered her that, of course she would go. A young, scared, naive, child would go." I spat, still pissed. He didn't say anything for a few minutes, looking out his window again.

               "I... I don't know." He stuttered, not saying anything else.

               "You need to at least hear her out.." I told him, heading for the door. "Yutaka. Keep in mind, she tried to get out once, and she nearly died for it. She wanted out, but couldn't make it out. Not alive." I told him, ready to leave, when a nurse came in with a clipboard.

                "Sorry to interrupt, but the results are back, you're okay to be released now." The nurse said cheerfully, so I stopped, turning back around.

               "Eiki. Wait for me will ya? Can I go back to the station with you?" Tennoji asked, and I nodded, agreeing to wait for him.

                About a half an hour later, we were finally heading back to the station. The doctor explained that he needed to watch for signs of an infection, and gave him a packet, along with medications, along with a long speech.

"Is she at the station today?" Tennoji asked me quietly, as we boarded the subway.

"She is yes. Her and Asano are getting along better as well." I added, just for the hell of it. He furrowed his brows at my words, but didn't tell me what he was thinking.

"Maybe this isn't a good idea..." He trailed off, fidgeting slightly, shifting his weight back and forth, from one foot to the other. He looked a little pale, and kinda nervous, vastly different from the confidence he usually had.

"Well.. Let's stop then, it looks like you need some water or something." I offered, and we stopped at the bar around the corner from the station, the same one we had run into him and Yuko at before. We both took a seat at the bar, getting water.

"She ran from the room crying." Tennoji finally admitted, rubbing his hand down his face, before taking a long sip of water. "I could tell she was nervous, and I yelled at her. Honest to god Eiki, all I could think at the time was how someone in a gang hurt Yuko, and I snapped."

"She was afraid of that. That's why she was crying in here when you ran into us. I told her about Yuko, and she cried insisting that you would hate her when you found out." I finally tell him, and he cast his dark grey eyes down, looking into his glass of water, as he shakes his head.

"She carries everything she's done with her.. Everything they made her do? She carries it with her Yutaka. She hates herself for it, believes she didn't deserve the second chance she was given. Believes she doesn't deserve happiness, that she doesn't deserve love." I explain further, and his head snaps up at my words, his eyes widening.

"That's bullshit." He says suddenly, and I sigh, agreeing, but knowing that she won't see it like that.

"She won't see it like that. She usually doesn't take to other people well either. This is kinda the first time she's been comfortable in a unit, besides with only one person. In New York she managed, but they usually had us partner up, because she didn't work well with other people, and no one else could stand to work with her, at least at first. She always felt out of place though, even when she started working a little better with the others." I add, thinking back on when we were both still in New York.

He snorts, before saying,"It's not like me and her got along right away either. It took a little time."

"It always does with her. She's a good person Yutaka. She might not show it all the time, but she cares a lot. Especially for you." I tell him, and his face burns up, turning red, before he orders a shot of whiskey.

"Should you really be taking that with your meds?" I asked skeptically, eyeing the drink.

"I'm a little nervous, going to see her." He admitted, before quickly picking up the shot glass, downing it. "One more then I can face her." He adds, getting one last shot, downing it in the same fashion before we pay, then head for the station.

When we finally make it into the second unit office, everyone is running around frantically, everyone but Shay that is. Kirisawa is yelling into a phone, though Hanai finally stops suddenly, eyes wide as he looks at us. "Eiki? Tennoji what are you doing here.. Then where's Shay?" He asked suddenly, confusing us.

"I went to go see Tennoji, only to find out he was getting released, so I waited for him. What do you mean where's Shay? She was here when I left." I ask, starting to get a bad feeling about this.

"Eiki? What the hell." Kirisawa exclaims, eyeing us. We all go take a seat, waiting for everyone to fill us in on what's going on.

"Shay got a call, from Daniel, and her old gang leader. They told her they had Eiki, and would let him go if she met them alone. When Hanai called you and it went to voicemail she ran outta here, ready to go bust you out. We've been trying to find you, and we would have went with her but they threatened to kill Eiki if there were any cops." Kirisawa explained, taking a drag of his cig.

"She left not too long ago, so we were trying to track Eiki first, and Asano was the only one that had the address. I've been hacking into her phone to track her, but the signal keeps bouncing, so either she's on the move, or their hacker is messing with us." Kyobashi explained, as his fingers flew rapidly over his keyboard.

"You're tellin me you let Red walk into a fucking trap? What the fuck are we waiting for? Ya got the address right? Let's get goin already. Ain't nobody got time for all this shit, let's go." Tennoji says harshly, his chair falling back as he gets up, heading for the door.

                         (Shayla's POV)

             Unfortunately, the boys had called it. It was a trap. Not long after I had come bursting into the warehouse, I was surrounded, and over powered. Part of me suspected that it might be a trap, but with them possibly having Eiki, I didn't want to risk not coming, or bringing the rest of the second unit.

               They had knocked me out eventually, after realizing I wasn't going down without a fight. I had taken as many as I could down though. I shot a decent amount of their people, before someone snuck up on me, knocking me out cold with a pipe of some sort. I could still feel my head bleeding now, though I couldn't actually reach back and check. They tied me to a chair this time, hands and feet, though this time, they didn't make the mistake of putting the bomb across the room from me. No, this time, it was tied to my legs.

              I was dizzy, and the room was spinning, making it hard to focus. I could hear the sound of water in the distance, the waves flowing back and forth, letting me know I was still on the wharf, or not that far from of it. The irony, didn't escape me. The wharf was where it all started, and now, where it would all end. At least for me. I squint hard, focusing on the bomb attached to my legs, watching the numbers slowly tick down. I had approximately twenty minutes left, then it would be over. Twenty minutes, not enough time for them to find me, and get the bomb off. They had taken my gun, and knife, leaving my phone, which was useless, I couldn't even reach it to make a call anyway. Twenty minutes, the slowest of my life, as I literally watch the clock, waiting.