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The purpose of this page is to summarize the plot of Used Books as easy reference for long time or new readers. It is a concise but complete compilation of plot points broken down by chapters. There are no “spoilers” in the sense of future content; however, if you have not yet read through the archives but plan to do so, the information here could spoil the experience of the plot twists and reveals. You have been warned. I repeat: If you have not read the archives but plan to, LEAVE THIS PAGE. Here are some other (less spoiling) resources to help readers get oriented: Table of Contents (with thumbnails) Character Bios Timeline Mid-Story Recap You're still here? I guess you actually want to read the summary or at least part of it -- despite being aware of the spoiler repercussions. Feel free to start scrolling or click on the links below to jump to a section. CHAPTERS 1 - 6 / CHAPTERS 7 - 10 / CHAPTERS 11 - 14 / CHAPTERS 15 - 17 / CHAPTERS 18 - 22 / CHAPTERS 23 - 27 / CHAPTERS 28 - 29 / CHAPTERS 30 - 34 / CHAPTERS 35 - 38 / CHAPTERS 39 - 42 / CHAPTERS 43 - 46 / CHAPTERS 47 - 50 / CHAPTERS 51 - 55 / CHAPTERS 56 - 62 / CHAPTERS 63 - 68 / CHAPTERS 69 - 73 / CHAPTERS 74+ or Start the comic from the beginning.

Used Books Plot Summary

CHAPTERS 1 - 6: Yuki is fired from her job as a security guard due to an incident involving her libido and a robbery. Seiko is also unemployed thanks to this incident and then left homeless from a fire in her apartment building. Kaida invites Seiko to move into the back room of the bookstore, and she accepts. The ladies then decide to start their own "problem solving agency" called Goro's Solutions. Their first client is a man named Jerry who wants help recovering a missing pocket watch. However, he turns on Seiko and Yuki and tries to force them to help him rob a bank. Seiko and Yuki fight back, and Kaida comes to the rescue with her rifle. Their next client is a woman named Mrs. Taney who asks Seiko and Yuki to clean her home. A mysterious bloodstain arouses suspicions, and Kaida is called in to help them access the bathroom, where they discover their client in a murderous trap. Her husband is arrested for the attempt, and Mrs. Taney is rescued. Then, a local high school student named Alex Harding enlists Seiko's help as a physics tutor. Upon learning that Seiko has a medical degree, Alex asks if she could help diagnose his brother Ricky, who refuses to see a doctor. Kaida joins Seiko, and together they go to the Harding residence. After an investigation of the household, Seiko discovers that Ricky is poisoning himself using digitalis -- in order to garner the care and affection of his friend Brigit. On the trip home, Seiko asks Kaida where she found the stethoscope that belonged to her father. Kaida dodges the question. Start reading at Chapter 7. CHAPTERS 7 - 10: Ricky and Brigit invite Seiko to join them for a show. Alex is left with Kaida and Yuki. After Kaida's long lost brother Tristan attempts to rob the store, Kaida takes his gun and throws him out on his ear. Alex pesters Kaida with questions until she swears him to secrecy on Jeff's (the armor) ax and then send him for groceries. She and Yuki discuss the day they met, when Yuki busted into her hiding place with accusations of multiple murder but agreed to let Kaida go if she promised never to kill again. Trouble strikes when Kaida ex-husband Fudo arrives with two henchmen and kidnaps Alex. He asks Kaida to steal a gem from a local museum for ransom and leaves one of his men to watch them from across the street. Kaida and Yuki proceed to rob the museum after leaving a note for Seiko. When they confront Fudo, Yuki and Kaida realize it was just a ruse to kill Kaida. While Yuki fights Tim (Fudo's larger-than-life henchman) and tries to help Alex escape, Kaida confronts Fudo. Their battle is interrupted by the police (including Yuki's friend Brad), who were summoned by Seiko and Tristan. They discover that Kaida's note made Seiko suspicious, and she tracked down Tristan using the serial number on the gun Kaida confiscated. She also talked Fudo's other young henchman into telling them his location. Following this incident, things return to semi-normal. Kaida and Yuki are startled to discover that Seiko helped Fudo's younger henchman Mike get out of a lengthy sentence by speaking to the judge on his behalf. Seiko also spoke briefly to Fudo, who warned her that Kaida was dangerous. Seiko does not tell Kaida or Yuki about this conversation. However, Kaida fields questions from Seiko regarding her marriage and her past. After this, Seiko tells them about the night her parents were killed. Seiko was 12 years old, heard the shots, discovered her parents' bodies, and saw two silhouettes fleeing their home. Through tears, Seiko tells her friends that she is no longer angry but wants to find out the truth. Start reading at Chapter 11. CHAPTERS 11 - 14: A car breaks down, and Yuki offers to help their owner fix it, citing her experience as a mechanic in the army and having built her own motorcycle. Unfortunately, while downtown buying a needed part, Seiko and Yuki bump into a couple of robbers, fleeing the bank. One gets away, but the other, having collided with Seiko, turns out to be Tristan. In the following confusion, they forget Yuki's tool bag, and when they realize the mistake, Seiko returns to recover it. Tristan returns their missing bag, but it turns out to be full of the stolen money, and in the meantime, Seiko is taken hostage by the other bank robbers. Yuki returns the money, and Tristan searches for Seiko. After a tense moment with Mike threatening him at knife-point, Tristan finds signs of Seiko's abduction and enlists the polices' help in finding and rescuing her. On the walk home, Tristan reveals the clues that led him to her, and Seiko chastises him for punching one of the bank robbers. When they return to the bookstore, Kaida chastises him too. Tristan then tells her his concerns about Mike's temper. Later Kaida throws a Halloween party attended by all their friends in costume. Mike and Tristan both come to the party, invited by Seiko. Yuki also invites her brother and a handful of eligible men she met around town. Tristan tells Seiko his concerns about Mike's obsession with her, and Seiko promises to set him straight. Unfortunately, before she has a chance to talk to him, Seiko talks to a flirtatious former student named Eric Mason, and a heated argument begins between Alex and Mike. Seiko turns Eric's advances down, explaining she has a crush on someone else. Mike and Alex's argument leads to a fistfight, culminating in Mike drawing a knife and attacking Alex, only to be intercepted by Seiko, who gets stabbed in the leg. Retiring to her room to tend the wound, Seiko has a heart-to-heart with Mike, who confesses his frustrations and his shady past, including the murder of a man he didn't know by pushing him in front of a subway. Seiko tells him that the crush she mentioned is not related to him or Alex, but she considers both of them like brothers. Meanwhile, during the party, Yuki acts oblivious to Brad's advances, and Brigit goes missing and then plays a prank on Ricky. Start reading at Chapter 15. CHAPTERS 15 - 17: Kaida's former coworker and getaway driver Celes shows up at the bookstore, and they catch up on old times (overheard by Alex), but she leaves before Yuki and Seiko return. Seiko then expresses her concerns about Mike's troubled past, and Yuki informs her of his history both in that case and when he was orphaned at two years old, when his dad, a politician, was assassinated by a throwing knife. When the mood lightens and the girls relax (after Kaida and Yuki have a heated argument), a visitor requests assistance with his car. Yuki sets out to help him, but is taken off-guard, knocked cold, and abducted despite having been prepared for trouble. When Seiko goes to check on her and finds a blood stain, she and Kaida go searching. Luckily, Brad overhears their discussion with another police officer and shows up to rescue Yuki as she is held handcuffed to a chair and nearly beaten to death by thugs who know of her legendary crime-fighting past. Shortly after Yuki's run-in, the girls enjoy a snowy day in the park. With her leg still in a cast, Yuki helps Kaida build a snowman, while Tristan teaches Seiko how to ice-skate; Kaida tells Yuki how she taught Tristan as a child when Tristan was trying to impress a girl. Mike and Alex set old grudges behind and enjoy light-hearted but competitive play. Start reading at Chapter 18. CHAPTERS 18 - 22: When Seiko gets a phone call explaining that her parents' killer has been caught, Kaida and Yuki set out on a trip to Seiko's hometown to prove his innocence. En route, Kaida tells Yuki the story of the night when she and Fudo assassinated Seiko's parents. Only Misaki was the target, but Fudo left to take her out (leaving Kaida as lookout) and returned shortly, shaken, and weeping that he couldn't do it. Kaida returned with Fudo and found the couple together, so Kaida shot them both and grabbed some jewelry for the cover-up. As they left, they heard the daughter (Seiko) discovering the bodies, and Fudo raised a knife to eliminate her, but Kaida intercepted and got hit instead. Once they reach the town, Kaida and Yuki find the police station and court. They meet Tucker Nash who was not only the detective leading the case but also Seiko's adoptive father. They also run into Kaida's twin sister Violet, a highly respected and extremely bubbly prosecuting attorney. When they meet the accused, the family's former gardener, he claims innocence by says he has no alibi. However, Yuki discovers he was having an affair with another worker, proving his alibi and saving him without condemning Kaida. In the meantime, Seiko has been left alone in the bookstore. Before she can get into mischief, Goro's Solutions gets their next client, a woman looking for a runaway cat named Feather. Seiko puts up signs and goes out searching for the wayward feline. She spots Feather and chased her into an alley but slips on the ice and then discovers Mike, near death, with a knife in his chest. As Seiko calls an ambulance, Mike pleads with her to get away and not return to the bookstore, but Seiko doesn't listen. When Seiko returns to the store, she finds Fudo waiting inside. He says he came looking for Kaida takes Seiko upstairs to wait for her return. As they are waiting, Fudo becomes disturbed by her resemblance to her mother. He remembers his meeting with Misaki on that fateful night. Misaki had expressed her selfless concerns for him and Kaida. Fudo attacks Seiko but is interrupted by the door chime. It isn't Kaida at the door but Alex, and Fudo lobs a knife at his back, as the boy turns to run. Fudo ties Seiko and critically wounded Alex together, sets a bookcase near them on fire, and departs. Tristan arrives on the scene, coming to return Jiro, puts out the fire, and he and Brad manage to run Fudo off when he returns. Alex and Mike recover at the hospital, and the danger passes. Start reading at Chapter 23. CHAPTERS 23 - 27: Chapter 23 begins at Christmastime, unfortunately not a merry time for all. In fear of her friends' safety, Kaida kicks Seiko out of the bookstore and does her best to dissuade Tristan's friendship by telling him she hates him and wants him out of her life. Seiko temporarily moves in with Tristan and along with Mike, who finances the endeavor, they come up with a plan to make Kaida feel safe again. Awoken from a nightmare, Kaida finds that her friends broke into the store and installed a security system, giving her peace-of-mind for Christmas. Then an old friend named Toyo, recently released from prison comes for a visit, bringing Kaida some books he rescued from a library that burned down. Kaida accepts the gift and agrees to a date with Toyo. Flipping through the books, Seiko finds a hand-drawn "treasure map," and she and Yuki decide to go looking for the prize. Alex stays behind and watches the store while Kaida prepares for her date. A customer buys one of the burned books from Alex for a strangely high price. Alex thinks of mentioning it to Kaida, but he is distracted by her lovely dress as she leaves for her date. While on their date, Kaida and Toyo discuss old times, and Toyo is stunned to learn what has become of his old pal Fudo. Kaida asks Toyo about pursuing a relationship, but he refuses for respect of his old friend. However, he manages to raise her spirits with a trip to the laser tag arena. On their treasure hunt in the forest, Yuki confesses to Seiko her numerous fears including heights, snakes, and tight spaces. She cites her older brothers' cruel childhood pranks as a root cause. The map leads the ladies into a cave where they discover a bag of jewelry. Seiko recognizes the jewels from a recent murder-robbery case. They are then cornered by the mysterious bookstore customer who turns out to be the murderer-robber. Before he has a chance to cause mischief to the ladies, he is attacked from behind by Alex, wielding a baseball bat. Alex receives a minor wound as a bullet grazes his arm, but otherwise no harm is done (except to the clobbered robber). During a phone conversation, Tristan tells Seiko he once worked with that robber (named Ronnie) and that they were lucky to have survived the encounter. He then is asked by Mike to babysit some kids because Mike made the commitment before he was assigned extra work at the cafe. Tristan reluctantly agrees but takes the kids to the bookstore for a safer environment and help. Emily, the oldest, plays games with Yuki, while the younger boy Jacob reads a book. Seiko and Tristan attempt to take care of the baby Jon. Kaida excuses herself but returns later with snacks for the kids. She takes the crying Jon away from her brother and soothes him until their parents return. Start reading at Chapter 28. CHAPTERS 28 - 29: On Valentine's Day, Kaida doesn't receive the usual ominous rose and card from Fudo, instead getting only a friendly box of chocolates. Seiko receives a friendly card from Alex, a sweet valentine from Eric, and a teddy bear from Tristan that he won from a claw game as a child. She also receives a bouquet, two airplane tickets, and an ominous card from Fudo suggesting she leave town. Seiko tells no one about the card and after failing to get her friends to take the tickets, she tries to put it out of her head. On her way home that evening, Seiko hears a cry for help from an alley. When she enters to assist, she is surrounded by Jerry and his gang, escaped from prison, who take her to a secluded part of town to enact revenge. After being burned and shot at, Seiko makes an escape but realizes the street has gone silent behind her. When she returns to the scene, she finds the gang slain and weeps over their bodies until Yuki and Brad find her. After having her wounds patched up, Seiko confides in Tristan that she feels guilty for the deaths and asks him to join her on the plane trip to Hawaii. Seiko changes her mind about the trip and decides to remain in town. Tristan gives her an ear cuff to help cover the scar she received when Jerry attacked her. The newspaper tells of a vigilante taking out criminals. Fudo attacks Tristan in his apartment. He demands a key to the bookstore, which Tristan refuses him. After receiving devastating wounds, Tristan escapes by jumping out the window. Mike finds him on the street and drives him to the hospital. Seiko is woken up later that night by Fudo's voice outside, cursing the "late" Tristan for being stubborn. Seiko confronts Fudo and Tim in front of the store, and Tim breaks her arm. Kaida awakens to the sound of Jiro who is crying because of the ambulance, and she goes to the hospital to check on Seiko. Start reading at Chapter 30. CHAPTERS 30 - 34: At the hospital, after some tension, all are united, and Tristan eventually confesses that it was Fudo who attacked them. Burning with hatred, Kaida leaves the hospital, set on revenge. Mike follows Kaida and convinces her to let him join her. When they reach the warehouse where Fudo stays, Kaida leaves Mike outside and enters. She finds Fudo sleeping off a head injury, caused by Seiko throwing Jeff's helmet at him, and resolves to shoot him in his sleep. Mike double-crosses her, and when she is distracted, Fudo stabs Kaida. He prepares for another strike, but Toyo arrives. Fudo becomes sobered by his friend and leaves with him. Mike calls Kaida an ambulance and leaves too. At Toyo's house, Fudo rests and cleans his knives, while Toyo remembers the way things used to be. He recalls ten years ago when Fudo's refused to do his job, and his despair over his divorce, orphaning Seiko, and Kaida's changing personality nearly drove him to suicide. Back then, Toyo rescued Fudo and convinced him that it was never too late to make things right. Toyo, after his flashback, invites Fudo to stay with him, but the police arrive and Fudo escapes out the back door. Fudo escapes down an alley and, pursued by Brad, scales a wall. Yuki attempts to follow but is stopped by Tim. As expected, Tim eventually gets the upper hand, but Mike trips him up and draws him away without Yuki seeing. She ends up attributing the rescue to Brad. Although Brad loses track of Fudo, he manages to wound him, and Fudo and Tim both disappear. Everyone (except Fudo, who isn't seen again) receives medical treatment. Mike returns Tristan's bathrobe to him and offers to help him buy new locks, but Tristan cannot forgive him for betraying Kaida and neither can she. Seiko sees things differently and tells Mike he's a hero for saving Fudo's life and preventing Kaida from "becoming a killer." Start reading at Chapter 35. CHAPTERS 35 - 38: Celes accepts Toyo's offer to move in with him and is impressed by his home's decor. Toyo tells her that he made his money with royalties from a magic book he wrote in prison. He proceeds to tell her a story from his days as a magician in the circus. Seventeen years ago, Toyo was sharing a trailer with his best friend, the knife thrower Fudo. That fateful day, Fudo chose teenage Lily Verona, a skeptic, as his volunteer from the audience, and their chemistry was apparent from the start. The show went well, but as the guests were leaving for the night, Toyo was warned by Misaki Toriumi to be careful to call her if he or his friend should get into trouble. That night, while Fudo was gushing about finding his true love and planning how they could be together, Lily arrived, having run away from home and adopted a pseudonym, "Kaida." Hearing her sob story about living in her sister's shadow, Fudo and Toyo agreed to shelter her just until she calmed down -- under the pretense of her joining the circus. Their plans were ruined when the circus closed and the nefarious people who bought and closed it, Raidon, Meredith, and a man in sunglasses, arrived to recruit Fudo as an assassin. Fudo refused but during the threats and fighting, Kaida struck back, sending a bullet through the head of the man with the sunglasses. Raidon gave his offer of protection to Kaida, and she agreed. Fudo changed his mind to agree too, in order to protect Kaida and Toyo, whom he insisted was an expert safe cracker. Toyo's story concludes, and Celes finishes unpacking. Seiko is still sporting a sling from when Tim broke her arm, but that doesn't stop her from participating in a park beautification project with Alex and Mike. The topics of the hour are Ricky and Brigit's upcoming wedding, and Mike's avoidance of Kaida. Seiko then encounters a former classmate named Natalie, who awakens her competitive streak. They duel in chess, tennis, and archery, ending in a draw before they are interrupted by Tristan. Natalie remembers Tristan, who had a crush on her in high school. She attempts to rekindle a relationship, but Tristan turns her down by lying about having a girlfriend. Ricky and Brigit are getting married on a stormy spring day, but there are two problems. Brigit is missing and so is Yuki. No one is worried about Yuki, who has made a habit of dodging weddings -- after dodging her own wedding years ago, but they split into teams to search for the bride. Kaida volunteers to partner with Mike, and when she has him alone, she draws her gun and demands an explanation. Mike tells her of the friendship he forged with Fudo a few years ago, when he was living on the street. Kaida is unsure but calmed enough to lower her gun. Meanwhile, Yuki, delayed due to problems with her bike, finds Brigit resting with cold feet beside the river. Yuki warns her about lost opportunities, telling her how after she stood up her fiancé Luke, he died before they had a second chance. Kaida and the others find Yuki and Brigit and rescue them from the rising flood waters. The wedding resumes, and Kaida catches the bouquet, which she quickly passes to her brother. Start reading at Chapter 39. CHAPTERS 39 - 42: While Kaida plans an excursion to help her confront her past (and therefore, leave it behind), Alex arrives and asks for help finding his new puppy Puck, who ran away into the forest. Seiko enthusiastically agrees and plans to join Alex for a camping trip to celebrate his birthday. After Seiko and Alex leave, Yuki takes Kaida to confront her former boss. At Yuki's suggestion, Kaida enters the prison in disguise while Yuki talks to Raidon. He immediately sees through Kaida's disguise, and when he acknowledges Kaida, she faints. Yuki takes Kaida, confused and weeping, home where they find Tristan asleep on her bed. He has broken in during their absence and discovered pages burned out of Kaida's album. Kaida admits to him that she doesn't recall the reason for their destruction. She asks Tristan if he knows anything about her necklace, but the only thing he can tell her is that it wasn't from their father. After sending Yuki and Tristan out for booze, Kaida calls Toyo and asks him about the items in question. Toyo informs her that the syndicate destroyed a lot of personal effects relating to its operation but the album was burned out of spite, and she was crushed to lose the pictures. He doesn't know the necklaces origins, only that she started wearing it two years after her divorce. He also informs her that Raidon once proposed to her. Meanwhile, Seiko and Alex enjoy a night camping and Seiko wishes him a happy birthday as he wakes up. Shortly after leaving camp, they spot Puck and chase him through the forest. He nearly leads them over a steep ledge, and Seiko and Alex discover a body at the base of it, a body that turns out to be Fudo Shibata, alive but injured, starved, and unconscious. After they argue the merits of helping him or letting him die, Seiko stubbornly sets to helping him, locating Fudo's makeshift hideout and setting him in bed. She is determined to wait until he is conscious and stable before going for help, and Alex grudgingly agrees -- after hiding all the weapons. When Fudo wakes up, he attempts to attack the good samaraitans but is too weak and misses. Seiko forces him back into bed and tells him their plans to get him medical help, to which he objects for fear of capture. Alex leaves to find cell phone reception, and Seiko is left alone with Fudo. After a short conversation, both fall asleep. They are woken by Ronnie, who is determined to murder Fudo for his vigilante killing spree. Alex arrives in the middle of the conflict, after finding the river uncrossable, and grapples with his old foe Ronnie. Fudo gets in a strike too, but falls unconscious from the exertion. In the end, it's Puck who chases the villain away. After applying first aid to Alex and seeing him fall asleep, Seiko has another heart-to-heart with Fudo, who confesses that it was he who killed Jerry and his gang but assured her that there was no heroic motivation behind the act. He was just being his vicious self. He warns Seiko to leave with Alex because he will kill them when he gains strength. They fall asleep and Seiko wakes up with a "leave immediately" not stuck to her shirt with a knife. She rouses Alex and leaves a note promising to keep Fudo's secret. Start reading at Chapter 43. CHAPTERS 43 - 46: At the end of the college semester, Kaida's store is buzzing. Not only are three college student customers and Tristan, Seiko and Mike helping out, but Kaida's sister Violet drops by too, and gushes to see Tristan with Seiko, whom she assumes is his girlfriend. With added encouragement from one of the students (Mina), Violet also tries to talk Mike into starting applying to college. During this lively conversation, they get three more unexpected visitors, outlaws who just robbed a bank. They take all the people in the store as hostages, and Tristan recognizes two of them as his former colleagues Sean and Kylie. Kylie expresses concern that their new partner Evan is homicidal and crazy. Evan then proves it by insisting they shoot a hostage, and Mike volunteers. During this diversion, Yuki slips free of her bonds and frees Seiko and Kaida. Seiko shoots Evan with a slingshot, and Yuki tackles him. In the struggle, Sean is wounded. Kylie admits that she knew Yuki was there because of her bike parked outside and had counted on her escaping. After the excitement dies down, Mina's mother, Mrs. Taney, picks her up and is excited to meet Mike. She explains that his father was a close friend of hers and that he and Mina were kids together. Mike leaves with mother and daughter to look at old pictures at their home. Then Violet explains the reason for her visit, seeking Kaida's support for a career change. Violet no longer feels like she's helping bring down bad guys but instead adding to the suffering of victims like Kylie. She also tries to talk to Tristan and his "girlfriend," but Tristan excuses himself to visit Sean at the hospital, and Seiko later packs some supplies to stay with him there. Celes and Toyo show up at the store to take Kaida away for a day at the beach. Seiko tags along, and they find a lot of friends there including Mike, Alex, Tristan, and the kids they babysat, Emily and Jacob. Emily gets pulled out by the current, and Celes comes to her rescue but hurries off with Toyo before she draws too much attention. Seiko has a deep conversation with Tristan about their bad luck with love and Tristan's personal mission to find his long lost and presumed dead father. Yuki has a summer job as lifeguard, but she is preoccupied with her new boyfriend Curtis, another lifeguard. When Yuki's brothers arrive to take her out for ice-cream, she and Curtis are nowhere to be found. Eventually, they track down Curtis, who confesses that he drugged her and left her to be picked up by a guy who paid him. Yuki's brothers escort him to the police station, and Kaida, Yuki, and Seiko look for her. Finding Yuki face-down in a public pool, Brad administers CPR while the girls go for help. Yuki revives and she and Brad exchange love confessions, but since she was under the influence of rohypnol, Yuki cannot remember the exchange the next day. Start reading at Chapter 47. CHAPTERS 47 - 50: While sitting in jail and talking to Meredith about the future, Raidon reminisces about the past, specifically the night sixteen years ago when he proposed to Kaida. Kaida was speechless and asked for more time. Then Raidon had to send her out on a mission, in which she was partnered with Fudo -- despite the objections Raidon brought up earlier that day at a meeting of syndicate heads. Kaida and Fudo carried out their hit with no complications, but they also eloped. Meredith is amused by the story and the repercussions of antagonizing Raidon. Seiko then sets out on a personal mission, one which she tells no one about. She delivers a care package to Fudo's shack in the woods. Fudo is not home when he arrives, but she's relieved to see recent signs of habitation, proving he recovered from his wounds. Seiko leaves before Fudo returns, but he finds and attacks her on a deserted street. As she passes out from blood loss, Seiko gives Fudo pause when he thinks he remembers his wedding, but Seiko points out that Kaida's father is long dead. Seiko wakes up in the hospital, having been left anonymously wrapped in the blanket that was in the care package. Her injury was so severe that her adoptive parents from out of town, the Nashes visit to check on her. Yuki offers to compare notes with Tucker, who is still investigating the Toriumis' deaths. Kaida resolves to tell Seiko her terrible secret out of fear of Tucker revealing it first. But before she can speak, Kaida is distracted by one interruption after another. First, an older customer named Conrad shows interest in a book that belonged to her father but settles for a copy of The Source when she refuses. Then Ricky and Brigit somberly arrives informing them that their chef Carter died unexpectedly of a heart attack and ask them to come to the funeral. The reason for their presence is that Kaida is mentioned in the will as primary benefactor to his modest estate. She is also bequeathed his diaries, but they can't be found. Before they can recover from that blow, Brad and Yuki arrive to discuss the circumstances of two more deaths, the Nashes. Overhearing this revelation, Seiko runs, weeping into the dark night. Her friends rally to find her, and she is discovered by Mike in a questionable bar. Mike barely escapes the scene with his life as Conrad calms the mob out for the blood of Fudo's former accomplice. After she calms down, Seiko packs to return to her hometown and settle the Nashes affairs. With Seiko's absence, everyone goes their separate ways. Kaida sulks in her basement, trying to convince herself that peace and solitude is exactly what she wants. Tristan sulks in his apartment, attempting to write a letter to express his feelings, while Conrad encourages him. Alex returns to his normal but boring life as a teenage boy playing baseball. Even Fudo struggles with his identity and curses Seiko for making him hesitate, while Seiko herself can't decide what she wants to do as she looks over the Nashes' charred foundation and Violet gives her a pep talk. Yuki struggles with her files to prevent more syndicate leaders from getting out of jail, but despite her efforts, Raidon and Meredith are, within time, released. Start reading at Chapter 51. CHAPTERS 51 - 55: Seiko returns to town and ends up pushing Raidon out of the way of a truck before heading home. The pleasant homecoming is short-lives, though, because Caroline Harding is kidnapped. Alex gets suspicious when the kidnapper demands Alex bring the money alone and leave his dog at home. When his sister is released, Alex is shot point blank by Ronnie but saved thanks to a bullet-proof vest. Raidon pursues the villain, but Ronnie escapes by apparently firing a shot at him -- which Seiko believes is a ruse. Raidon then tried to reconnect with Kaida, but Toyo intercepts his advances. Later, Kaida joins Yuki for their annual trip to the Renaissance Fair. Tristan, Seiko, and Celes join them, and Kaida leaves Jiro in Toyo's care. While the others sleep in the car, Kaida tells Celes about Yuki's tragic Ren Fair history. Yuki used to have regular rendezvous with her fiancé Luke at the park. Even after she left him at the altar after the fortune teller Hyacinth warned her of a wedding tragedy, Luke met her again. That last time, he even prepared ceremonies for their "take two" wedding at the park. Yuki conquered her fears, confronted Hyacinth, and was excited to get married. Tragically, Luke was killed just before the ceremony, shot during the fireworks show by a sniper in the bell tower. Kaida confesses to Celes that the sniper was her. This year at the park, Yuki has a less eventful time. Yuki ducks Hyacinth and goes off on her own in the park. In the evening, she meets Brad on the roof of the chapel. Yuki expresses her sympathy for the syndicate's victims and employees, and they watch the fireworks together. While Yuki is on her own, Celes receives a dismal fortune foretelling her capture and the loss of a close friend. Tristan and Seiko brows the fair together, getting mistaken for a married couple. Kaida helps a lost girl find her mom and then has a run-in with the vengeful sister of a former victim. She is rescued by a "mysterious" monk with a sword who vanishes as soon as he arrives. Kaida talks and connects with her attacker, as a sister herself. At the end of the day, Yuki travels home with Brad instead of the other group. As they arrive in town, they discover Jiro badly wounded and wandering the street. Tristan takes him to the vet, while the others escort Kaida to the hospital to have her injuries from the fight checked out. They discover that Toyo is comatose in the hospital, after being attacked in his home, and Brad reveals that one of Fudo's knives was found on the scene. Stepping outside to make a call, Seiko finds Fudo in the alley, hoping to overhear news of Toyo's condition. He believes he must've attacked his friend, but Seiko insists that he was at the Ren Fair, costumed as a monk. Raidon also has an alibi, given before he even finds out what happened. He consoles Celes and offers her a place to stay. Still recovering from their ordeal, Kaida and the girls along with Mike and Alex help Eric Mason prepare campaign banners for the mayoral race. Mrs. Taney also provides a video of Mike Thompson Sr.'s campaign and tells Mike what a dedicated father he was, always putting Mike's (Jr.) needs ahead of the campaign. This discussion elicits an emotional outpouring from Mike, and he has a one-one-one venting with Seiko about his turmoil in the foster system and what he thought was genuine kindness from Fudo. He has now decided that Fudo is nothing more than a conniving villain, and Mike has new hatred for him for having killed his father. Start reading at Chapter 56. CHAPTERS 56 - 62: With Toyo incapacitated, Raidon resumes pestering Kaida, but she fends him off. She is on the edge of her patience, and Yuki has to dissuade her from seeking violent revenge on Fudo or the world as a whole. Instead, she convinces Kaida to relax and possibly find professional help for her insomnia, memory loss, and general agitation. Yuki makes her promise not to do anything rash while she and Seiko are away on their most recent job. That "job" is replacing two sick staff members aboard a murder mystery cruise. The host is a friend of Brigit, and she and Ricky are on the cruise too. Yuki and Seiko also learn that Brigit is pregnant. Seiko is tasked with the job of cleaning and serving, while Yuki stands in for one of the actors. However, Yuki's character is killed off early on the cruise, so she can assist Seiko. As they are cleaning one of the rooms, Seiko discovers a gun in the nightstand, and its nervous owner, a woman named Brenda, knocks Yuki unconscious and locks the girls into her room. Yuki recognizes Brenda as a fugitive named Valerie. whose sons were murdered, and her husband went missing. With Ricky and Brigit's help, they escape the cabin. Yuki and Ricky confront Valerie while Seiko and Brigit warn the captain. Unfortunately, they find out that Valerie killed neither her sons nor husband Nathan, and the captain is actually Nathan in disguise. It escalates to a hostage situation. Seiko is wounded, but when Nathan takes Brigit at knife-point, Valerie shoots him. Nathan dies of his injuries, and Seiko ponders the nature of love. Meanwhile, Kaida is good to her word and seeks conventional help for the troubles plaguing her. She seeks the advice of a psychiatrist and then, as a stretch, visits a priest. As non-religious, she has an interesting conversation with the priest (O'Bryan), who is sympathetic and diplomatic with her emotional needs. She also discovers that Tristan is a member of the choir. She invites Tristan and Mike to dinner as a final step in her relaxation therapy. Mike excuses himself early to escort Mina to her car. Kaida and Tristan have a candid talk about her past, and what little he apparently knows of it. Mike loses track of Mina in the parking garage and is ambushed by Meredith out to take revenge for her husband, the man Mike killed two years ago. Luckily, Fudo is in the neighborhood (spying on Kaida) and rushes to his rescue. Meredith leaves as soon as he arrives. Mike expresses his hatred of Fudo, despite the rescue. While Fudo bandages Mike, he expresses his sorrow and confusion and his belief in his own evil nature. Mike ends up defending Fudo and reminding him of their history. Then Fudo escorts Mike to the hospital to treat his mangled hand and broken jaw. Kaida and Tristan end up in the hospital visiting Toyo. Tristan brings his comatose friend flowers, but Kaida can't bear to see him, so stays in the waiting room alone with one other visitor, Fudo in a disguise. Fudo avoids her gaze and attempts at conversation. Kaida has a memory evoked by his posture. In that past event, Toyo was being treated for a gunshot wound. Raidon held Kaida possessively and warned Fudo to watch his attitude or he would make like unpleasant. Then, Meredith presented Kaida with a pair of sunglasses -- taken from the body of her first victim. The image disturbs Kaida so much that she screams and has a breakdown in the waiting room. Fudo shows sympathy but keeps his distance as Tristan rushes in to comfort her. Then they encounter Mike, now bandaged up, who explains that he was mugged. Start reading at Chapter 63. CHAPTERS 63 - 68: Kaida is still trying to politely turn down Raidon's advances while she recovers bits and pieces of her memory. After their recent fiasco, Yuki attempts to teach Seiko self defense, but Seiko fails, so Kaida gives her some pepper spray. She gets it just in time to go on a private excursion, which she tells Kaida is a date. Kaida, in the meantime, is visited by a couple of former syndicate members, a computer hacker named Dozer, and a one-armed red-haired bomber called Pepper. The two former syndicate members tell Kaida that it was none other than Raidon who helped them gain their freedom. They then treat Kaida to a night out shopping and drinking. Seiko's "date" involves sneaking into Raidon's house to discover what kind of man he truly is, determined not to allow anyone else to bias her. Alex becomes her grudging partner this evening. As they attempt to enter the back door, Alex and Seiko are intercepted by Raidon's Doberman Hecate, and the man of the house soon follows. He invites them inside, and Seiko and Raidon have a seemingly candid discussion about Raidon's history and Seiko's mother. Raidon insists that he was a bad man who has turned over a new leaf. He asks Seiko and Alex about Fudo, but both deny having any contact with him. They apologize and then begin walking home. In the wee hours of morning, Kaida, Pepper, and Dozer encounter Yuki in a joyous mood. She's on the case of Toyo's attacker and reveals to Kaida that Fudo was framed in this case. After Yuki leaves, Pepper questions the wisdom of being her friend, especially in light of certain dark secrets (Luke). She advises Kaida to give Raidon a chance and beware of Yuki. Shortly, they run across Raidon, and the four of them decide to have coffee at the cafe where Mike usually worked. Tristan is playing barista in Mike's stead, and frets over Seiko's mysterious "date." Kaida calms his fears by telling him she's carrying pepper spray. At the end of the evening, Raidon takes Kaida home and they thank each other for a lovely evening. He then waves at Yuki, who has been trailing them. As they walk home, Seiko and Alex are ambushed by a pair of men wearing goggles and masks that protect them from the pepper spray. Ronnie (one of the men) injects them with some kind of sedative/anesthetic. While she's unconscious Seiko recalls her mother's history of returning home wounded and refusing to tell her father any details. The men tie Seiko and Alex to cinder blocks and toss them into the river, but they are rescued by Fudo and Mike, who were out fishing. Seiko wakes up in Fudo's home, and the host treats them to hot chocolate and is acting generally hospitable and sane. Seiko tells him about Raidon's questions, but Fudo doesn't recall his former boss. Mike then drives Alex home, and Fudo takes Seiko. When they arrive at the bookstore, Seiko is missing her keys and too weak to yell, so Fudo tosses a stone at Kaida's bedroom window. A heavy sleeper, Kaida doesn't stir, and Yuki interrupts them before they can continue this dangerous venture. She deliberately pretends not to see Fudo and then escorts Seiko inside, where she helps her dry off and tells Seiko she seen through her lies about going swimming and deduced that she has been drugged and nearly drowned. Raidon and Meredith meet the next morning to discuss their position. Because she believes they were the only leads to find Fudo, Meredith gets upset when Raidon reports that Alex and Seiko have been killed. However, he adds that Mike Thompson is a better lead and assigns Meredith the task of capturing Fudo alive. Start reading at Chapter 69. CHAPTERS 69 - 73: Seiko is delirious with a fever and being watched by Tristan while Kaida goes on a date with Raidon. Seiko is very clingy and cries when Tristan leaves for a couple hours for groceries and medicine. She confesses affection for him in her delirium, and Tristan insists she rests. Meanwhile, Yuki is having a miserable day. She is poisoned, has her motorcycle stolen, and is nearly run over, saved in the nick of time when Brad pushes her out of the way. Battered, Yuki comes looking for Kaida at the store and there she meets Ricky, who has brought over photos from the mystery cruise. Among them are pictures that were on the camera from when Carter owned it, including one of Kaida receiving her necklace from a young Fudo. Unaware of the existence of these photos, Raidon, on his date, tells Kaida that he was the one who gave her the necklace she cherishes so much. Yuki takes the photo to give to Kaida and intercepts them outside the restaurant. Yuki accuses Raidon of the attempts on her life, and this leads to a heated argument and falling out between her and Kaida. Only later does Yuki realize the attacks on her were done deliberately to provoke her and strain her relationship with Kaida, and the plan played out exactly as planned. Seiko recovers and is tending the store almost full-time now that Kaida spends many days and nights with Raidon. One day, while Seiko is watching the store, Pepper stops by. The glint of a knife provokes Jiro to bite Pepper, thwarting her attack on Seiko. Unaware of this plot, Seiko fetches her first aid kit, and Pepper poisons her glass in her absence. After Pepper leaves, Mina stops by and tearfully asks Seiko if she can talk to Mike for her. He's been acting very cold lately, and she doesn't know why. Seiko calls Mike, but his phone dies in the middle of their conversation. After Mina leaves, Seiko discovers the poison and reports it to the police and Yuki, who is in her apartment with temporarily disabled Brad (in a leg cast) puzzling over Carter's photos. She has also been contacting the FBI and found out that Carter was under surveillance -- while he was doing surveillance for Raidon. Mike finds a note under his door that is apparently from Mina, and he hurries to meet her in the park. But it turns out to be a trap. Meredith handcuffs him to a fountain and threatens him. The true target of the trap is Fudo, whom Ronnie and Tim find preparing to rescue Mike. Meredith plans to frame Mike's death on Fudo, but Fudo frees himself and gets hold of Meredith's gun. He uses the only shot to free Mike but gets captured himself and is soundly beaten for his resistance. Mike runs to the bookstore where he frantically tells Seiko his story. She calls Tristan to help get the cuffs off but lies about the circumstances, knowing Tristan's hostile feelings for Seiko. Meanwhile, Raidon has an audience with Fudo in his home. He tells Fudo about the memory erasing that was done on syndicate members to spare their lives. Raidon offers Fudo protection and his old job in exchange for his life, but he flatly refuses, and Raidon informs him of his upcoming execution. Start reading at Chapter 74. CHAPTERS 74+: A few days after Fudo's capture, Seiko and Mike are determined to help him, but they have no plans and don't even know if he's alive or dead. Then Celes shows up with intel and experience. She had accepted a job as Raidon's driver to seek revenge for Toyo's attack. She overheard their plan to hang him and knows when and where. Together, Celes, Mike, and Seiko assemble Kaida's arsenal. Then they drive to the remote location on the outskirts of town, set up a sniper rifle, and wait for the execution party to arrive. Prior to the main event, Raidon allows Kaida to visit and bid farewell to her ex-husband. Fudo makes no resistance and is teary-eyed to see her, but Kaida is full of range and wants to do the job herself. Raidon tells her that she needs to help him set up an alibi, so she curses Fudo and leaves. Raidon then coerces Fudo to write a dictated suicide note. Following a tip from Celes, Yuki gets dressed up and brings Brad along to the Twilight Inn, where she interrupts Raidon and Kaida's date and, in the ladies restroom, shows her the photograph from the late Carter's camera. Start at the beginning of Chapter 76.