"You cut her brakes."

My voice never wavered as I stared hatefully at the man before me.

"All because you thought she saw something."

"…"

"She was making a delivery that night the murder of Yuka Azumi happened. Unfortunately the delivery was to her next door neighbor at 32nd street and Willow. She should have been at my house for her little brother's…. Youichii's birthday party but that stupid Tsubasa told her to make one last delivery for him.”

I shook my head, explaining further. “It had started to rain heavily, and as she was running back to her car… she had no idea that a murder had happened. In fact, when she looked up at her house with no lights inside she didn't think twice about the shadow in the window. She was just worried about making it to my house in time. But in reality, you shot her mother and when you looked outside you saw Mikan's retreating figure in the rain. You feared that she saw the murder with her own eyes and would tell the public of what had happened.”

My hands shook, the memories all started to overwhelm me. I couldn’t keep my thoughts straight—but I had to do it... do it for her.

“That was when you changed targets. The sad thing was though… she didn't even witness the crime that you committed. In fact, she didn't think any of it at all. Later that night when the police arrived telling her and her brother that their mother was found dead, she never doubted it to be a murder. She assumed it had been suicide. That was, after all, the reasoning the police came up with. You would have definitely gotten away with your crimes if you hadn't had murdered Mikan. I wouldn't be here now risking my life to catch her families' murderer. Too bad."

My voice dripped with venom; it was all true. At least it made sense with what had occurred in the past three months… and he would never have gotten to where he was without the help of Tsubasa and Hotaru.

"How…" The man spoke to me. He finally acknowledged my presence. His deep vibrato echoed within the barren warehouse. "did you get to that conclusion Natsume? Did you hire a detective? Guessed?"

I grimaced as he began to laugh out loud.

"Tell me." His black onyx eyes gleamed with humor.

Taking a deep breath, I began down my memories once more.

It was two weeks after the accident.

I was very fortunate to have survived, but it was an entirely different matter for Mikan.

Perhaps it was the angle of how she hit the deer, or was it the mountain? All I could remember was the glass imploding in, the sickening crunch of bone as the deer crashed through, and the car swerving to the right at a ninety degree angle.

The velocity we hit caused Mikan to die instantly.

And me?

I suffered four gashes, ten bruises, and thirty-eight stitches.

Pretty damned lucky.

"We stand here today to send Mikan Sakura above to where her living mother shall welcome her beyond the gates to heaven…"

My hands clenched tightly to Youichii's as he began to cry; He was after all the only one left in his family. His step-father disappeared, his mother committed suicide, and Mikan died in this accident. I wouldn't blame anyone for crying if they were in his shoes.

Honestly I thought men should never cry; they should always leave those emotions to their girlfriends, mothers, and sisters… but when it revolves around a loving girl, your beautiful girlfriend, and a young, older gentle sister?

Like I said before, I wouldn't blame anyone, man or woman, who shed those tears of grief.

After the burial Mikan was buried six feet under and just was left of the grounds was the gorgeous tombstone that was decorated with a porcelain angel on top.

Youichii stood beside me as the shadows of people moved to place their wishes and flowers on the ground. I didn't budge from my spot as people offered both me and my little protégé their condolences.

I didn't know how long I stood there, but it was well beyond a couple hours.

The only reason I knew that was because Youichii tugged onto my sleeves as the clouds shifted into a darker gray. The thunder rolled by soon after that and the wind picked up. Then the drops started falling. They came from the clouds above, and down my face.

"Natsume?"

It was his voice, his eyes. Everything about this ten year old boy sent me crashing down to my knees. It was too unbearable. This weightlessness in my heart; the pain of not ever seeing her next to me. That day, I truly did feel like I had died as well. Everything in me died.

"I'm sorry…I'm so sorry Youichii. I'm sorry I couldn't…" I croaked over the words, trying to wipe the tears from my face so that he wouldn't see me weak.

God damned Pride.

"I couldn't protect her." With my left hand I pounded on the earth where she laid and cried angrily out.

"If only… If only I had died… If I died, she wouldn't be down rotting with the rest of those forsaken souls… She'd still be here with you, eating her favorite howalon snack… Damn it all… If I hadn't had pressured her into going out for dinner that night… To dance at the lake… to lie out in the grass! If I…!"

I had stopped berating myself when Youichii's small hands wrapped around my neck in a comforting hug. His face was soaked by the rain that was slowly beginning to become heavier. Soaked in our black tuxedo's we stayed there in the quiet graveyard crying our hearts out.

Unable to stand it I brought us both into a tight hug and stared at the sky. The looming darkness remained overhead as if to shed its own tears for the death of her.

It was ironic.

Mikan had talked so much about her faith in those angels…

Why did it seem to me that out of the two of us, why did they take Mikan away? If they truly did do miracles, they would have at least protected Mikan.

Then the revelation came to me.

Angels… are… not real…

And I refuse.

I refuse to believe.