My Wife ????
Riyu
“Where the fuck is my wife?” The man across from gives me a slow blink, neither surprised nor perturbed by my demand. Instead, he slowly swivels in his chair, nodding to his younger brother.
“Where the fuck is our sister?” Porter Shipmoore asks as his older brother remains silent behind the desk in the office they have the nerve to lease in a building the Takedas own. The sheer bravado of these guys is unmatched, save for a few of our acquaintances and the men in our own family. Having been raised with the sort of power that makes countries crumble gives you a certain type of fearlessness.
“You’re asking the wrong question of the wrong men. What use do we have of your vigilante sister? Our wives never utilized her services. The simple fact is you failed to protect her while letting her run rampant, making enemies of some powerful men — kings even. Now the chaos she has sown has visited on her.” I tell them with cool ruthlessness. They understand and will respect nothing less.
“Prosperity’s good work aside. She is a Shipmoore and as such we will have her back, unmarked, unmolested and whole.”Bishop finally speaks. “Once she is again in the bosom of her family, I’m sure your wives will be returned. Though we have no idea how you managed to lose your wives again, we will endeavor to offer you any assistance you require.” Steepling his fingers, Bishop gives us the briefest of nods indicating the meeting is over.
Standing, we bow. The Takedas and Shipmoore — two of the most powerful families on the planet are at war.
“What do you suggest now?”Hisashi asks as after we relay the information from the meeting.
“They have them. We are at war with the Shipmoores. They have left us no other choice.” I know it without any evidence, nor does my cousin demand any. No one else would dare go against the Takeda empire. No one has the resources of the proxy network they’ve managed to establish since opening an office in Tokyo.
They made one error though; we rule this country.
“Shut them down. No Shipmoore vessels may enter or exit. Delay all contracts in every country we have influence. Our sole goal is to make them feel the impact of their poor choices.” I tell the men in the room. This goes no further than those present.
Just then a call comes in. The screen in the conference room we use to simultaneously monitor several of our businesses fills with an image.
Clicking the button, I stand, watching a live feed of my wife and Bridget fill the screen. They are sitting in a garden. The kimonos gifted by my mother they wore the night of the theater are gone. Clad in simple linen lounge sets they seem oblivious of being watched.
“How long do you think they are going to keep us here?” Ev asks slowly stirring her tea not looking at Bridget directly like she doesn’t want attention drawn to her.
Stepping closer to the screen, it almost feels like my chest is caving in. She’s so close, it’s as though she’s mere inches away, but there is nothing in that garden that tells me the location.
Fists clenching, I watch helplessly as she lifts her head, watching Bridget shrug. “I don’t know. I know Ti and Ri are beside themselves — do you think they think we ran away again?”
My brother grunts. I know he thought it. Hell, I did too. Thought maybe even Haha had a hand in it too. She’d been a little smug at the little tea party she held for them.
It wasn’t until I saw how truly distraught she was after they were taken that I relented.
“I don’t know. I don’t think so. I gave Riyu my word. I hope he believes in that. I just hope no one gets hurt by this. I hope they don’t do anything to cause Prosper anymore pain. She was just trying to help people. She doesn’t deserve this.” Taking a sip of her tea, she puts it back down like she lost interest in it.
Bridget nods, fiddling with her food as if she’s not really interested in eating the large array of food set before them.
“Nope, she doesn’t, but she also told us hundreds of times she knew the consequences of her actions and she was willing to take whatever problems came her way because of it.” Shrugging a little, she takes a petit four and pops it in her mouth.
“With those two behemoths behind her, I can see why she thinks that. Still—” Ev stops short, a dead giveaway if I ever saw one. She’s not naïve enough to think they are not at least being observed. Knowing any implication will only further antagonize her captors, she covers the hesitancy with a sip of tea. “Still, I just want her back safe.”
Bridget is already nodding, but I doubt the Shipmoores, who I know are probably watching alongside us, aren’t fooled.
“Ladies Takeda, it’s time for your daily constitutional.” A demure servant says off-camera.
Ev and Bridget both stand, walking behind the woman deeper into the garden.
After a moment, the camera switches focus, following them along the path they take as the attendant leads them along a scenic path.
A few minutes later, the screen switches back to black. Then blazes with one phrase: YOU KNOW WHAT MUST BE DONE.
“Motherfuckers,” Takashi swears wrathfully.
It’s obvious who it’s from — the Shipmoores use none of the tatemae of our culture. The bluntness of the West is evident in all their actions without them taking credit outright for their actions.
“I can almost respect their approach if we weren’t the ones being targeted.” Leaning back in my chair, I swivel to face Hisashi. “You have a relationship with Tsuyoshi Tatsumoto, do you think he can be reasoned with when it comes to her?”
