Lupin The Third: The Beast of Lykanisches

Chapter 12

Alone in her prison tower, Diana lay upon the bed. Her trembling hand uncurled and a syringe rolled along her long, slender fingers and landed upon the mattress.

'That's it,' she thought, gazing dismally at the empty syringe. 'That's the last of the antidote.'

The sleeves of her blouse hid the bruises on her arm from repeated self-injections. But the need to hide these incriminating bruises from Antony was becoming increasingly moot. For soon, they would fade and there would be none to take their place. She'd used up all of the antidote.

Several weeks prior, back at Antony's ancestral manor in Dal Fiume, a good Samaritan had slipped her this reversal agent along with an accompanying note:

Use this to counteract the sedative. Use sparingly. Try to escape.

Your sister is in the care of Lupin III. If you do escape, remember me fondly. I'll accept cash rewards for my altruism.

~Fujiko Mine 💋

Diana had vague, nebulous, almost dream-like memories of that time; when a woman dressed like a maid came to her room and spoke with her. The words were fuzzy at best. She was up to some trouble. Attempting to rob Antony, from the little Diana gathered. And the name, Fujiko Mine, rang a faint bell of familiarity. The name of Lupin the Third, of course, was very known to Diana, given her younger sister's obsession and the disaster that had occurred the night of Ruby's birthday.

In following the instructions of her enigmatic benefactor, Diana used the antidote as sparingly as possible, always just after Antony drugged her and left her alone, but before the sedative could leave her completely doped. Each time, she made futile efforts to escape, careful to feign catatonia any time someone came near. But each time, it was hopeless. Antony had too many thugs and 'yes men' happy enough to turn a blind eye to the unethical, immoral, and downright criminal acts he perpetrated upon his innocent wife. How easily folks feigned ignorance for the right amount of money.

This was Diana's last chance to escape. Unfortunately, a tug of the door had revealed it barricaded and guarded. And tying the bed sheets, window curtains, and even the drapery of the canopy bed was not enough of a rope to permit her an escape through the window. It was truly hopeless.

With a cry, Diana had thrown herself prostate upon the bed and sobbed. She no longer cared if Antony came to check on her again, only to find her sober along with the incriminating yet empty syringe. What was the point? But fate favored Diana Del Monte that night, for little did she know, her knight in shining armor was at the door.

"Holy shit, Inspector! You nailed that guy!" Kierra proclaimed in Zenigata's ear.

"Totally badass!" complimented Adela.

"Let's just hope our princess isn't in another castle," added Marco.

Silence.

"No? You don't get? It is a reference, you know? To Super Mario. Perhaps something was lost in translation."

"No, we're just in awe that you actually said it," said Kierra.

Zenigata did his best to ignore all the congratulatory chatter in his ear. He needed to be on his guard for what was to come when he opened this door. For all he knew, he could be walking right into a trap.

He opened the door.

The sight which greeted him almost seemed to come straight from the fairytale stories his mother used to read to him as a child. A cold, sparsely furnished prison tower, and its only occupant a woman prostrate upon the bed, sobbing into her arms; her long blonde hair, like spun gold, splayed out across the mattress. But at the sound of his steps, she raised up with a gasp. And those beautiful blue eyes... eyes which she shared with her younger sister, gazed upon him in fear.