That was much easier said than done. The little brat had picked up a few tricks. When Koichi went to grab him, Ryuichi twisted free, then swung at him with a stick he had found on the ground.
“All right, kid. Enough.” He disarmed the boy, then quickly picked him up and threw him over his shoulder.
“Release me!” Ryuichi struggled and kicked.
Frustrated, he glared at Keiko. “A little help?”
“You seem to have him well in hand.”
He ground his teeth.
With a smirk, she touched Ryuichi’s hand. Instantly, the boy stopped moving.
That stunned him. “Did you kill him?”
She rolled her eyes at the question. “He’s asleep. Why would I kill him?”
There were so many reasons he could name, but Koichi knew she wouldn’t see the humor, or even his side. So, he quickly carried the boy to the tent he’d been given.
With a tenderness he didn’t currently feel, Koichi set the boy on his futon and resisted the urge to kick his unconscious body.
“Are you all right?”
Koichi shook his head. “Not really. I don’t like having to pull demons off other kids. Besides, the real question is... who do we kill for this?”
Granted, he was reverting to the first rule he disdained, but in this case, it seemed the best course of action.
“What is wrong with you?” Keiko asked.
He gestured at the unconscious...something. “This isn’t Ryuichi.”
“Of course it is.”
“No. This is something else.” A tic started in his jaw. “Masaru!”
For several seconds, the irritable yokai refused to answer. Then, just when he was sure it was useless, Masaru appeared.
Koichi tsked at him. “Where have you been?”
“On a personal errand. Why?” Masaru furrowed his brow as he saw the way Koichi had dumped the kid on the futon. “What did you do?”
“Me? Nothing... yet. What haveyoudone, demon?”
Keiko sucked her breath in sharply as she moved to Ryuichi and held up his arm. She looked at the wall where her shadow lurked.
“Where’s his shadow?” Her voice was filled with horror.
“Exactly.” Koichi folded his arms over his chest as he glared accusingly at Masaru.
The yokai shrugged. “I bought us time.”
Keiko groaned at his answer before she set Ryuichi’s arm down. “No... say you didn’t do it.”
“Okay,” Masaru said simply. “I didn’t do it.”
Cursing, Koichi raked his hands through his hair. “Have you... no, you don’t. You have no idea what happens when you take someone’s shadow. How important it is that we keep that part of ourselves. You’re such an idiot.”
“What’s the big deal? You get rid of the bad part. What’s wrong with that?”
