That night Akane wasn't sure she would get any sleep. She laid on the floor of the trailer and stared up at the water stains that created interesting shapes on the tiles of the ceiling. It was two in the morning and a few hours ago Mai had came back looking exceptionally happy. It didn't take being an empath, such as Atsuko, to guess that something had happened between her and Dr. Davis. Ayako wasn't back in the room at the time of Mai's return though, and Akane wasn't up to hearing about it. So instead of asking about it she had quickly got ready for bed and turned her back to the twitterpated young woman.

Once Mai's breathing evened out, indicating she had fallen asleep, was the moment Akane had turned on her back and started mentally creating images from the shapes of the water stains on the ceiling. It was better than thinking about the crap that went down only hours before. It was easier to do than consider the worried look on John's face. He was such a sweet man. She was sure that she didn't deserve his kindness.

What would he say if he had known what the officers had questioned her about? Would he have been understanding? Probably. She didn't know much about his past herself. But she did know what the others had told her. That he had been a priest in training. So, he would have at least listened with a sympathetic ear and reserved judgment. But she didn't just want to share her tragic story and have the person she was talking to seem indifferent in how he responded to it either. Even if he was as sincere, as he seemed to be, she wasn't sure she was ready to share that story with the new people that had just entered her life.

She should be relishing in how lucky she was at the moment. She had found a place and people that had unusual abilities similar to her own. She should feel relieved that she wasn't as much of a freak as she had thought she was only a few days ago. She wasn't alone in this world anymore. But instead after that line of questioning and reliving experiences she would rather forget she just felt hollow.

She was just beginning to wind down enough that her eyes began to shutter automatically when Mai began thrashing about in her sleep. She shifted to a seated position to watch her and try to mentally decipher how she should react to how Mai was lashing about to and fro. She was almost certain that waking her was a bad idea. Should she get someone though? She didn't have long to consider the question because suddenly Dr. Davis was busting through the door and at her side.

Mai immediately recognized the muted colors and the vibrant reds. She recognized the long drapes and the empty screen. She was once again in the theater. This time however she was much closer to the screen than she had been before. She wasn't seated in the very front row where she would have to look up to get the whole picture but in the third row where everything was front and center before her. She didn't bother wondering why she had a closer seat this time. She merely tucked her feet underneath her seat and waited for the film reel to start rolling.

The images began to flicker across the screen and as Mai watched the more annoyed she grew. The dream wasn't showing her anything new. The images were of the same missing women. The same way they were animated in their terror. Their silent screams had already been haunting her, and she was unlikely to forget them any time soon. So, why was she being shown this again?

"Oh, are you displeased with my film? Should I instead make you the star?"

In the blink of an eye she was no longer in the crowd. She looked down at herself and noticed her skin was the black and white of the film. When she moved a crackled streak would appear in her skin. It was much like how old movies that had not been enhanced had moments where there was almost a static like quality to that scene.

"Now that you are a part of the movie what role should you play?" The voice was most definitely male. It wasn't manic like the previous voice of the kidnapper they had found dead. No, this voice held a confidence in it. It held an intelligence the other man seemed to lack. This man had to be the mastermind. "I could make you one of my stars. You are quite lovely. You would suit the part perfectly." A human shaped shadow walked into her vision. His features lost to only the inky black silhouette before her. "But, I would need a reason to take a part of you. Your eyes are quite lovely but honestly I am settled on those eyes of your companion." The shadow began walking around Mai. He was studying her. Gauging her features carefully in consideration before he spoke once again. "Hm, this is difficult. All of your most perfect parts I have already harvested from the others."

Mai hadn't noticed but as he continued to pace around her she had started turning to keep him in her eyesight. "Dear, you must hold still. I can't get a grasp on what I desire from you if you don't stop moving." Mai wouldn't heed to his demand and continued to keep him in her line of sight. "Fine then. If you are going to be that way."

Mai barely deciphered that the shadowy form's arm had reached out to her before she felt herself falling downward into a stiff wooden seat. An echoing double metallic clicking noise had her casting her eyes downward. Her hands and feet were now secured by metal cuffs from the chair. She gasped and strained to move her trapped appendages even though she knew it was of no use.

The shadow remained silent and gave Mai a few minutes to test her restraints. "Your hair. I think I like your hair best." Suddenly Mai's head was immobilized. It was caught in with a metal band across her forehead to keep her head in place. "I guess I shall scalp you my dear. Your hair would make a great addition to HER." He sighed. "After years of working on this project she is almost complete. I only require a few more pieces."

"You're constructing a woman?"

"Au contraire, I am constructing my bride. I am constructing the most beautiful woman in the world. The only woman that is worthy of my complete adoration."

Apparently this man considered himself a modern day Dr. Frankenstein. He sincerely believed that harvesting parts and putting them together would somehow be able to be reanimate as his perfect woman.

"I do feel bad for you my dear. At least my bumbling sidekick was more tame with his method of surgical removal. Personally, I like to hear my victims scream." He had a scalpel in his hand suddenly and he was leaning in toward Mai. The biting pain of the scalpel pressing against her forehead had Mai screaming out. "Oh yes. I do like to hear them scream."

Mai felt the comforting arms surrounding her as she slowly regained consciousness. That paired with his alluring scent made it easy to know who was embracing her before she even opened her eyes. "Naru?"

He shifted her body so that he could look her directly in the eyes. She watched him wince when he looked at her forehead. "Miss Kimura, get a wash cloth from the bathroom. Also, see if there are any bandages in there." Per normal Naru didn't ask he demanded, and Mai was tempted to call him out on it but she had information she had to share. She would have another time to quibble over his lack of manners. "Naru, I know why he is taking the girls. I know why he is killing them. He's—"

"He's harvesting the body parts. Probably making the perfect woman if I were to hazard a guess."

Mai glared at Naru. She was instantly agitated that he had already worked this out on his own and hadn't bothered to share his theory. This particular aggravation she couldn't meekly temporarily disregard. "You really need to start thinking aloud a bit more. It would be beneficial to everyone if you openly shared what you know."

Noll saw the touch of anger on her face and the brittleness in her voice. If he was wanting to cultivate a relationship with her in the near future then he was going to have to see things from her perspective. He sighed. If she weren't injured he would probably make some teasing remark but the cut on her forehead made him more considerate than normal. "It was a working theory that I had only began to consider recently. You are right I should have shared it even if it was only a theory. It would have been something to work with at the very least. We seem to be grasping at straws on this case."

Mai leaned back away from Naru and arched her eyebrows in surprise. "Do you have a fever or something?"

A laugh almost bubbled from his chest before Akane made her reappearance. "You know I could just clean her up and use my ability?"

"While this is true the cut isn't very deep, and I feel like we should make a practice while on a case to only use your abilities in the most dire of situations. That way you aren't drained when it truly matters." Noll took the wash cloth from her and lightly pressed it against Mai's injury. He began frowning as he inspected the cut. It was a clean straight line. "Mai, what did he use to make the cut on your forehead?"

"He used a scalpel. Why?"

"It's a clean cut. There are no hesitation marks, and the line isn't even remotely jagged."

"Okay...what does that mean?"

"It means that our mastermind at the very least studied medicine. He was either a doctor or a studied medicine." He removed the bandage from it's packaging and gently, with care, placed it over Mai's injury. When she winced at the pain he found himself wincing also.

"How could a doctor do something like this?" Mai was appalled at the possibility that someone who was meant to help people recover and save them was causing harm.

Noll never shrugged but he was tempted to do so now. He was somehow more in-tune to Mai's feelings in this moment. She wasn't only outraged by the fact she was also in her own way hurt. Not for herself but for all the people out there that could have been misled by this individual. Somehow, without talking it through, in that moment he knew that. Ah, idiot scientist, she almost always thinks like that. I'm surprised you didn't instantly make the connection before now.

But how do I know this without any verbal reassurances? Noll was sure he was to get a lot of flack from his brother about this conversation at a later date. He just couldn't be perturbed by it right now.

It's not that you didn't know it before. You just didn't welcome your thoughts to it before. I think on a subconscious level you always knew how giving Mai was with her heart. A touch of unsureness entered Noll's mind. No, not in that way. She hasn't gave her heart in that way to anyone. She has only felt that way about you. I'm certain of that.

While his brother's words were reassuring he couldn't rely solely on them. He couldn't even completely rely on what Mai told him when he asked her outright. He could only have faith that when they sat down and had a deep heart to heart that she would be completely honest with him while in turn being completely honest with her.

It dawned on Noll that he had cradled her against him while he was lost in his thoughts. He was now seated on the floor with her half in his lap resting against the right hand side of his body. He turned toward her and their faces were bare inches apart. A light dusting rosy color settled across her cheeks and he was tempted to savor her lips again. It was only the shifting of Akane's feet as she headed to the other side of the trailer that had him reconsidering. He would rather not have an audience trespassing on any romantic interludes between them. He rubbed the pad of his thumb against the heightened hue of her pale cheek. "First thing tomorrow it would be smart to get with Yasuhara to exchange information."

Noll watched Mai's throat work as she gulped back her nervousness before settling on her response. "Yeah, I need to see if he learned anything. Even if he hasn't knowing that key detail will definitely help."