Chapter 8: Talon Company
[07/21/4517]
Maddox rode along a single road made of brick. Ahead of him was a complex of factories, warehouses, and offices. The smokestacks sticking up into the sky billowed out teal colored smoke. The smoke broke apart in the air. There was a large brick wall surrounding the complex that stretched far. It was like a fort. Security walked along the top of the wall with rifles slung over their shoulders. He could see towers at the corners of the security wall with guards looking out at countryside. As he rode closer, Maddox looked behind him. The trees were far away. There were no rolling hills or any rock formation to hide behind. He was completely exposed. As Maddox halted his horse at the door, a small metal door opened up. There was a bear man’s face, barely able to fit through the window. “What is the nature of your business?”
“I am Private Detective Colt Maddox. I would like to speak to Sebastian Reinard. He offered my client an offer a couple of days ago.”
The bear man closed the door and Maddox rode his horse back a little to get a view of the walls. Despite the brick layout, the height appeared too high for rope reach to the climb. The guards above watched him. The small door opened and the bear man spoke. “Head to the stables. His personal assistant, Kiwi Artán will meet you there and escort you to Mr. Reinard.”
“Thank you.” Maddox said. The small door closed and only the right main door opened. Maddox rode inside. Security guards, all lumo sapiens with rifles stood in towers over looking the open promenade. The bear man led him to a stable where there were horses and carriages. As his horse reached a post, a young woman dressed in business attire approached him. Maddox climbed down and tied the reins to the post.
“Good afternoon detective, I am Kiwi Artán. Welcome to Talon Company.”
Maddox stood before Kiwi and noticed the distance from the main entrance to the buildings. “Thank you. I did not expect to get inside very fast.”
“You and your client have priority entry. Mr. Reinard would be very excited to see him.” Kiwi looked around and saw only Maddox. “Where is your client?”
“Medical appointment.”
“Oh, is he okay?”
“He is doing fine.” Maddox scanned the facilities. “Was this an old fortress?”
“Why yes it is. Please, this way.” Kiwi led Maddox across the grounds. “This was built seven hundred years ago when Nirico was a stronghold for the Kingdom of Niri. After the fall of the Niri family, the surviving family members turned this region in a city-state immediately. This is the last stronghold in the city.”
Kiwi led Maddox to the office building where she opened the main entrance. Inside were a receptionist, plants, and artwork. “The Reinard family purchased this stronghold for equestrian business. This entire area was filled with horses that let free after this complex shut down.”
“That explains the stables.” Maddox noticed a telegraph room as he walked by. He then entered a large office area with people sitting behind desks for as far as the eyes can see. He noticed one of the staff took a binder clip from a basket and pinched a pile of paper together. He turned around and handed to an office clerk who rushed past the detective. He stood before the basket as Kiwi continued talking.
“The stables were the first one built by the Frederick Reinard. It is the only one left standing after Mr. Reinard’s grandfather decided to build smelting factory. A family treasure.” Kiwi walked up the stairs to the second floor. It was a long hallway with artwork of the Reinard family, men and women dressed in wealthy outfits. There were two large doors at the end. Kiwi opened them both and inside was a large office.
The walls were lined up with bookshelves. Behind the desk was a large window from end of the wall to the other. In the center was a red carpet with yellow trim. There was a small bar with bottles of alcohol and serving glasses. By the desk was a small cabinet with two shelves side by side. It had a stock ticker on it with a telegraph next to it, and a basket filled with file folders. There Sebastian stood in front of the ticker as a strip of paper slid out. He lifted the ticker tape reading what was written on it. He ripped the tape and opened the cabinet. Sebastian pulled out a file. As he read the paperwork, he went to his desk. He took a pen and started to sign. “My apologies detective, I will be with you in a second. Ms. Artán, please take this to the foreman in Factory A.”
“Yes Mr. Reinard.” Kiwi led Maddox to the desk. After she took the file from Sabastian, he stood up and followed her around the desk.
“Detective.” He reached out with his hand. “A pleasure to meet you again. I am disappointed that the Earthworlder is not with you.”
“What Earthworlder?” Maddox shook Sebastian’s hand.
“Ah yes. He must remain hidden from the public eye. Rumor and déjà vu.” With their handshakes held in place, both men stared each other down. “When your little incident with Eiberia is over, your little rumor will become a fact.”
Maddox released his handshake. “He has his medical appointment to tend to.”
“I understand. He needs to stay alive correct?” Sebastian walked over to the bar. “A drink?”
“No thank you.” Maddox removed his hat revealing his blonde hair. “I have a few questions before I allow you to meet my client.”
“Of course, there are security issues no doubt.” Sebastian poured his glass and walked over to Maddox. “This is Earthtech we are dealing with after all.”
“So you understand International Law?”
“My lawyers have consulted me about this.” Sebastian took a sip. “They assured me that after this issue is resolved and the Grand Arbiter at the Economic Guild decides which Earthtech can be commercialized, I can begin contact with the Earthworlder to conduct business without interference.”
“Yet, you want to see him now.”
“The Earthworlder is going to open up a new wave of tech rush not unlike the gold rush of 3426. Those Twenty-sixers were like a group of fronins feasting on its prey. A little advantage would not hurt.”
“You could get sanctioned for this, especially how light your security is.”
Sebastian placed his glass on his desk and turned to Maddox. “Light? My security is the best in the region. No hiding place for as far as the eye can see, and walls as tall as a building.”
Maddox took a binder clip out of his pocket. Maddox started playing with it. “This is a very fascinating piece of metal. I saw one of your employees use it on paper. What is this for?”
“Amazing isn’t it? It’s called a paper fastener. One of my employees in the smelting plant forged this with Arthurium. I wanted to pitch this to the Earthworlder. Here is how it works. You take these handles and lay them over the top. When you press down on them, it creates this open mouth see. Then you slip a pile of papers like this to clamp them together and flip the handles over in place like so.” Before Maddox could talk, Sebastian rose one finger up. “Now watch this. Organizar.”
The binder clip glowed and the sheets of paper lined up evenly with each other.
“Impressive isn’t it? So many companies, even my rivals are going to want to buy this in bulk.”
“Of course.” Maddox did not show any type of emotional reaction to what the binder clip did. He took the binder clip back.
“You don’t sound impressed.”
“That’s because I found this paper fastener by the Slope End Tavern.”
Sebastian looked closely at it and Maddox closed it in the palm of his hand.
“That’s not possible. The paper fasteners are not ready for the public. We are testing them throughout the offices for quality control. How did you get this?”
“During my investigation, I was tracking down a lead. It led me to Slope End Tavern. I found it on the side of the road. That’s how I learned you had this complex out here. Your employees stop by there on their way home every night. Do you check your staff before they leave these premises?”
Sebastian picked up his glass and finished his drink while keeping his eye on Maddox. It was hard for him to know if this was a truth of a lie. The sound of the horn blared. Sebastian walked to the window. He looked down as he watched his employees walk across the factory grounds to another building carrying lunch boxes. “Thank you for bringing this my attention.”
“You understand that I can’t let you meet my client under these conditions.”
“Have a good day detective.”
“Good day Mr. Reinard.” Maddox approached the door. As it opened, he passed by Kiwi tipping his hat. “Ms. Artán.”
“Detective.” Kiwi said.
“I will see myself out. Thank you.” Maddox made his way to the office area. He approached the basket of binder clips. There was no one at the desk. As he walked by without stopping, he dropped the one he showed Sebastian into the bucket. As he exited outside and made his way to the stable, Sebastian watched from the mirror above.
“Ms. Artán, as soon as the detective leave I want three things.”
“Yes, Mr. Reinard.”
“First, lock this place down. No employee is to leave these premises until I say so. I want the chief of security now. Second, send out my spy network and have them follow the detective, I want them to locate the Earthtech and take pictures of it. Third, arrange a private meeting for me with the Earthworlder. Get him isolated from the detective and any security he may have.”
“Of course Mr. Reinard.”
“I must make him my business partner and buy him out before he figures out that he can become one the richest men on Teora.”
***
At the embassy, a carriage waited outside the premises where two guards watched the street. Kenichi stepped out of the tent where he noticed Emma sat at a bench reading a book by a tree. He walked towards the main entrance approaching the carriage. He stopped and turned around. He made his way over to Emma. As he approached her, she spoke. “Yes Señor Yamamura.”
Kenichi stood quiet watching Emma read without looking in his direction. He scratched the back of his head. “I… I’ve been thinking.”
“Go on.” Emma flipped a page.
“I still have one hour before I have to the Doctor Loren. So… I… uh…”
Emma sighed and closed the book causing Kenichi to panic. “Relax Señor Yamamura.”
“Uh… yes.”
Emma still did not look in his direction and stared out at the tent. “Why don’t we start from the beginning?”
“Eh?”
“Forget teleportation and reincarnation.” Emma slipped the book into her sling and held with her injured left arm. She looked in his direction. “Hello, my name is Emma Fumiko Rosado. I am from the capital city of Cayey, Boriquen. I am a member of the Librarian Guild and I am here on business.”
The maturity and kindness in her voice calmed Kenichi and he responded. “My name is Kenichi Yamamura. I am from Yokohama, Japan. I own the Yamamura Shipping Company and I was… brought here…”
Kenichi stared at his young hands. He soon realized he was talking to a young woman again. He also remembered what said on when he brought the truck tot eh embassy.
“Can I try again?”
“Sure you can try again.” Emma said unaware of what he meant by that comment.
Kenichi saw Emma beyond his hands. His heart beat rapidly knowing that his thoughts of Fumiko are so strong. Yet, he knew how many times he tried to talk to woman back on Earth, dating them. The struggle he had, it returned as he Emma waited for him to speak. “Ms. Rosado, would you like to join me at a café? I have one hour before I have to go to my doctor’s appointment.”
Emma stood up and tapped his arm. “Good, you finally took your first step. Come, I know a café near Sarina’s clinic.”
As Emma walked away, Kenichi stared at his young hands again, and looked up into the sky. “Fumiko… are you saying its okay now? Especially since our children are adults. I need to know that I’ll be fine.”
“Hey!” Emma got Kenichi’s attention and she waited at the carriage. “Are you going to help a lady on board or what?”
***
At the café, a waitress served Kenichi and Emma cake with tea. They were sitting outside with other couples and young women seated in other tables. A barrier separated them from the street as motorcycles and carriage drove by. Kenichi saw the inside where more people were seated, and cakes and pastries were on display at a counter. Emma spotted the security guards waiting by the carriage watching the area.
“It’s really that bad?” Emma said and took a sip of tea.
“A lot of people died in that forest.”
“It’s not your fault.”
“I know.” Kenichi looked down and stared at the cake. “But, what if I never drove in the rain that night? I would never have been teleported here.”
“Whoever did that would have done teleported someone else anyway. The result would have been the same.”
“Yeah, knowing how the teleport spell works, you’re probably right.”
Kenichi and Emma were quiet for a moment. She could sense the negative atmosphere is pushing away what she really wanted in this moment. “The first time I actually got in trouble,” Emma’s first words lifted Kenichi’s head up. “was when I was eleven.”
Kenichi stared at her as she continued. “There was this motorcycle at this store my sisters, brother and I would pass by one our way home from school. I always wanted to ride a bike so much. So a couple of days later at night, I snuck out of the house and made my way to the store. The motorcycle was there. I would touch it. Look at all the parts. I even hopped on it. Then I saw the starter. I didn’t know the spell command so I just kept guessing words over and over again. Then it started up. I got so startled that I pulled on the throttle fell off the motorcycle and it drove right into the store destroying everything inside. I ran off, but I didn’t realize I was spotted. I made it home and I threw myself in bed without my parents noticing. The owner arrived. It turned out I dropped my school ID. I didn’t realize I had it in my pocket. My parents were furious and I was scared.”
Emma stared at her reflection in the tea. “I was really terrified.”
“Hey!” Kenichi leaned closer. “They didn’t… hurt you.”
Emma shook head no. “Not physically, no they would never do that to me. I really was scolded and the punishment was severe. I also had to work at the store to pay off the damages and my school found out as well so…”
“It piled up.”
“Yes. The thing is though, while my parents were upset, I saw in their eyes relief. I didn’t understand it. It was almost as if they were glad I got in trouble, like I was a finally a normal girl or something. It was weird.”
Kenichi let out a smirk. “I can’t tell you the number of times I got myself in trouble when I was a kid back on Earth. I was always mistaken for a gang member. The thing is that my friends and I had a brotherhood kind of thing. They were way into cars and motorcycles. I was into trucks. When we would go do street racing for my friend Daigo, there would these big truck on display decked out with decals, lights, all kinds of colors. Heavy metal blared loud. We would gamble on who would win. Sometimes we get a good hustle.”
Emma tilted her head as Kenichi continued. “One time did a big hustle on this guy. He really didn’t know what he was doing. It was an easy catch for us. So we kept winning over this guy. We made a lot of money, enough to buy all the manga in the world. At least for me and Daigo. That’s all we cared about.”
Kenichi rubbed his forehead. “He figured out our hustle, and couple of tough guys, very tall stepped in. They started a fight with us. Just a fist fight. I took down the guy we were originally hustling. Suddenly police drove from different directions. Everyone ran in different directions. Daigo tried to help me escape but I pushed him around the corner. He already had a record with the police. I didn’t. The racers drove off, and some of us got caught.”
Kenichi took a sip of tea. “It turned out the guy I punched was an undercover cop. My father wanted me to rot in prison, but my grandfather needed me to inherit the family business. He pulled a lot of connections and got me a lawyer that reduced my time to community service and I had to dedicate my entire life to the family company or I would be sent to prison. That was the last time my father and I ever looked each other in the eyes. I wasn’t even allowed at his funeral. My… wife and I visited his grave after Ichigo was born. She wanted the children to know him. He was a good father and I was a bad son, plain and simple.”
“I’m sorry.” Emma said with soft eyes.
“You make a choice, you live with it.” Kenichi wiped his brow again.
“Call me Emma.”
“Eh?” Kenichi breathed heavily as stared at her gentle eyes. “Emma. Kenichi.”
“Kenichi.” Emma nodded and he lurched over breathing like a saw through wood. “Kenichi!”
He pounded the table getting everyone’s attention. The guards hurried over as Kenichi collapsed on the café’s fence. He saw Emma kneeling before as one of the guard hopped over the fence and laid him on the ground.
Emma yelled out. “Go to Sarina’s clinic. She’s around the corner.”
Kenichi’s eyes grew wide as he saw Emma turn into Fumiko. His heartbeat slowed and his eyes blurred. He had a thought. It made his lips move. He could not hear what he said to her, but the last image he saw was Emma clutching her hair and froze. When Kenichi blinked, he saw a woman standing before a throne atop a set of stairs.
She was dressed in a light green gown, with long teal hair that moved by the brush of air. Her pupils were golden yellow. When she spoke, her voice silenced all other sound, and it was gentle enough to calm his nerves. “We finally meet Mr. Yamamura.”
To Be Continued...
