"No wayyyyy!" Jade Bloom wailed, reading the text message that had just come from her publishing agent.
Star Cheong and Masumi Ichizo looked at their friend, forks raised halfway to their mouths, eyebrows raised in anticipation. Caking Your Day, the girls' favourite bakery, was full at that time, crediting Jade with a few stares and inquiring glances.
She blushed a bit as she saw the attention she was attracting and then turned back to her friends.
"It's my agent," she said, "He wants to discuss the details of my next book tomorrow…" Jade poked her cheesecake with her fork.
"But that's picnic day," said Star, "You can't miss out on picnic day." She frowned. The trio had been planning that picnic for weeks, since school had lately bombarded them with impossible amounts of homework for the past month or so.
"Can't you tell him to move it? Or, like, just send you the details in an e-mail or something?" pestered Masumi, "Tell him you're not available tomorrow." She grabbed Jade's mobile and began replying to the message that was still displayed on it.
"I can't tomorrow," Masumi read out her message as she typed it, "I have something to do." She kept the phone out of Jade's reach as she sent it.
"There, we're all set," she said, smiling at the dumbstruck writer, "You could say 'thank you,' you know." The brunette pulled her wallet out of her purse and left some money on the table as she stood up. "Let's go?"
Jade grunted a reply as she took her mobile from her friend's outstretched arm. "Thanks."
The sun was setting as Jade opened the door to her apartment. Her phone beeped its message tone. She fumbled inside her bag momentarily, looking for her phone that had managed to worm itself under the other stuff in her bag. She had received another message from her agent. It read:
Don't worry. It'll only take few minutes. I'll meet you in my office at ten.
Jade grumbled once more, but thought better. She knew she hadn't been as quick-paced as she was a year ago, when she stayed up late into the early mornings to finish up the writing assignments her agent had given her. Recently, she was, as she said, in expiration: Writer's Block.
1. Ms. Sparkly-Pen = rival for the publisher's attention
2. Two years of extended contract with the agent.
3. Thirty thousand gold as minimum pay for the book.
4. Four weeks to complete a book.
Jade scribbled down the details her agent had given her in a small notepad she kept in her bag's pocket and started to reply to the message Masumi had left on her mobile. She hailed a cab for the ride to park—it was on the opposite side of town.
"I made it," Jade announced, wiping the sweat off her forehead. She found her friends sitting in the shade of a tree with the picnic blanket spread below them.
"You were supposed to be here five minutes ago," Masumi wagged her finger, "but better late than never, I suppose."
The park was already a bit crowded. The weekend was a choice day for other families and friends to go out and have fun. The girls needed to be there early to get a good spot.
"So what did Mr. Agent tell you know, Jade?" Star asked, mid-bite. They had already opened up the picnic basket and were starting to munch on the sandwiches that Star had brought.
"Well, I got a month to write a book," sighed Jade, "and I haven't got the least idea on what to write about." Her eyebrows furrowed as she pouted. "I'll just take a walk again, I guess, and see if anything jumps up."
That was how she got ideas for her last book. She was walking around in Barton Town and came across a talking cat. The book came out a month or so later, under her penname, aRLegOdDesS. The book was a successful one and earned Jade good money, but the fund from that book was quickly running out.
Jade helped her friends clean up and waved as they got into a cab. They would hang around Star's house now and watch some movies. Jade, as much as she would have joined them under different circumstances, was going to take her "Inspiration Walk".
Who knows? Maybe I'll see a flying dog now…
Jade wandered aimlessly on the streets. She paused now and then to step into shops she was unfamiliar with and look around. Time passed quickly, and it was starting to get dark, but Jade's wandering had taken her to an unfamiliar part of town, one with dark alleys and ill-lit streets.
Shady characters were starting to come out of their hiding places. Jade shifted her backpack into a position in which it hung in front of her, where she could see it. She forced herself not to look in other places and focus instead on finding the way by which she had come into that subdivision.
She took a blind left into an alley that led to a dead-end. She realized her mistake and was about to go, when she sensed some movement from one of the walls of the alley.
A dirty well-disguised door opened slowly. A man, who under normal circumstances you would avoid, stepped out. He had a shabby bag with him that sagged with the weight of whatever it was that was inside. Jade shifted into a stance that would allow her to defend herself if the man attacked.
"Oh? What have we here?" he asked in surprise. He stopped in his tracks and took a good look at the girl standing before him.
"I know taekwando!" Jade blurted out. She didn't shift back into a normal standing position though and eyed the man thoroughly with the light that shown from the door that he still held open.
His brown hair was swept away from his face, and a large cross hung around his neck on a necklace.
"Relax, kid," he said, "I'm not the one you should be afraid of. It's those guys in there" –he turned his back to her as he closed the door—"When they figure what I've done, and seeing you here isn't going to help you either, as helpless as you look." He shrugged his shoulder so that the bag slung on it hung in a more comfortable position. The man began walking out of the alley, as the speechless teen slumped to the side.
"You look lost, though, so I'll give you a tip," he said, stopping in his tracks. "I'm on my way to the friendlier parts of town. Try to keep up if you want to get out of this joint." And so the man walked on in front of Jade, who followed behind him, and he never said another word until they reached a better part of town.
There were more people around, people hurrying home from a long day at work who had families waiting for them at home.
"I guess you can find your way from here, eh, girlie?" he said, taking a look at Jade.
"Uh, yeah, thanks," she replied, "It's Jade, by the way."
"Jade," he repeated, "I'll remember that." And then he spun on his heel and walked off, whistling to himself quietly.
The door opened slowly, revealing a hallway behind it. It was dirty and dusty inside from neglect, although the clean doorknob suggested recent visits to the building. Nicolae looked behind him as he closed the door that led into the hallway.
He drew a key from his pocket and quietly unlocked the first door to his left. Then he slipped inside the room, closing the door as he did so. He took a box from the bag that he had and left it among other boxes piled to the side of the room.
Perfect, he thought.
The small room was the man's hideaway, where he kept all the trinkets and baubles he found during his strange expeditions into downtown Barton. All the other boxes were empty. It was the special box nearest to the door that contained what he had stolen from the building where Jade found him.
Whatever was inside once belonged to The Org, one of the major underground groups that controlled the black market in Barton. Nicolae had overheard the discussion of two of its members. He had only caught a few muffled sentences, but the keywords were all there.
He had overheard something about a major shipment to be made within the next month and where it was going to be received. Hidden among other files and delivery receipts of the same group were the directions to the pickup point and the paper authorizing the holder to claim the delivery. All Nicolae had to do now was find a buyer…
The room also had a shelf to the other side, where various items were displayed. There were a few recipes, some odd items and jewellery, and a few potions. Nicolae stopped to bag a few potions before heading out of the room. He stopped to lock the door, and satisfied with the night's work, headed for his trailer where he would sleep for the night.
Five days passed, and neither Jade nor Nicolae saw much of each other again. Saturday came, and Jade's agent called her to check up on her.
"How're you doing, Jadie?" he asked.
Jade groaned into the phone. "Not very well," she said, looking at her laptop's screen. It was blank except for a few choppy sentences she had squeezed out of her.
"Aw, sorry to hear that, but you gotta keep trying, okay? Bye!" And then the phone went dead.
Jade growled. She hated it when her agent did that. She had talked to him about it once, but all he did was apologize in a hurry…and the next call she got from him ended pretty much in the same way. She sighed. Maybe she'd go take another walk.
Jade gave Star a call; her friend picked up after a few seconds.
"Hey, Star," she said, "It's Jade. I was wondering if you were busy this afternoon…"
"Oh, hey, Jade," came Star's voice. It sounded weak and nasal as Jade listened to what Star said next. "I'm sorry, but I've got a bad cold…It's making my headache."
Jade pouted. "Really? Um. I guess you should just take a rest then," she replied.
"Yeah, that's what Mom said too. I'm sorry, okay?"
"Yeah, it's fine. Feel better soon, Star. Bye."
"Bye."
I guess I'll stop by the bakery and see if I can get her anything to make her feel better, Jade thought. She switched her laptop off and paused to grab her bag before getting out of her apartment.
The bakery was almost full, as usual. The bell over the door dinged as Jade walked in. She rushed to the counter and ordered a few cupcakes; those were Star's favourite.
She was about to walk out when a familiar looking man caught her eye. Pictures of last night's events flashed through Jade's mind.
He was sitting at a table in a corner alone, leaning on the chair's backrest. He looked up as he saw her coming and grinned, flashing his teeth at her.
"Hello, Jadie," he said nonchalantly, "Care to have a seat?" He gestured at the empty seat opposite him.
Jade nodded and said as she sat down, "You never told me your name…"
"You don't need to know," replied Nicolae, still smiling, "but since you told me yours, I guess I should too." He paused to clear his throat. "It's Nicolae." He extended his hand and warmly shook Jade's as she took his.
"Listen, Jadie. I need a favor," Nicolae said, leaning in toward her. "Thing is, I'm being followed around by some people from last night. Mind if we pretend I was a friend and was looking for you last night? Just so I'll have an excuse for poking around downtown, eh?" he lowered his voice to a whisper. "I'm sorry to have gotten you involved in this, but turns out they've got more eyes than I thought. You'd save us from a lot of trouble…"
"Us?" Jade interrupted. She raised an eyebrow.
"Well, since you were there, and they know you were there, you stuck your nose into something you really wouldn't want to have gotten involved in."
"What have I gotten myself into?" asked Jade. Here it was: a possible subject for her book.
"Do you really want to know?" Nicolae's voice was teasing now, on the edge of dark humour. She was a random girl; what harm could she possibly do? Or…What would the information do to the teen's head? But it would be dangerous for him, if she knew what kind of person he was. She could go tell the guard, and Nicolae would have even more trouble lying low…Oh no, that wouldn't do.
Jade nodded, undaunted by the undertone in the man's voice.
"Hm, I can't tell you," he smirked, "It's my secret." He paused to look out the window. "Let's go…They've left me for a bit, and I doubt they'll make a move on me if I'm with you…so…Let's go for a walk."
Jade's head was swirling with questions. Was it only a coincidence that they had met there? What was his secret?
She shook her head this time as they stood. "I'm sorry, but I have to take these," she gestured with the cupcakes, "to a friend's house."
"Then we can walk to your friend's house," replied Nicolae smugly. He held the door open as he waited for her to follow him.
And although her instincts warned her against him, Jade walked with him to Star's house.
It was getting dark again, and Jade was getting hungry. She had spent the rest of the afternoon walking around and talking with Nicolae.
The man noticed her frequent glances at her watch and asked, "Time for you to get going, isn't it?" He took a look at the sun setting.
"Yeah," replied Jade quietly, "I can walk home by myself…"
"No, I'll take you home," Nicolae interrupted, "I owe you, after all."
They walked to Jade's apartment in silence and said their goodbye's when they got there.
"Thanks, Jadie," Nicolae saluted her, pulling his cap lower over his face, "And if anyone weird shows up, walk around the park…Look for my trailer. I should be there to help you out." And then he walked away.
The night was quiet; the noise outside was carpeted by the rhythmic sound of the rain falling over the town. Jade had long been asleep; it was nearly midnight.
Her door rattled quietly, the only audible thing besides the quiet purring of the air conditioner. Jade moved in her sleep.
The door opened silently—someone had pried it open from outside. Two men stepped into the apartment. One had rope with him. They snuck inside, not bothering to close the door behind them. Opening the door to Jade's bedroom, they tiptoed in.
Jade moved again, and the men stopped in their tracks. The one carrying the rope nodded, signalling his companion to move forward. Quickly and quietly, they quickly seized Jade's arms, binding them even as she woke up.
"Hey!" Jade said, suddenly wide awake, "What do you think you're—"
The other man quickly pulled out a handkerchief out of his pocket and tied it around her head, muffling her voice even as she continued to shout for help.
"We're just looking for something your friend took from us," sneered the man who had brought in the rope. Jade looked at them wide-eyed. Their faces weren't covered by masks, but the dark in the room prevented Jade from seeing anything more than the outline of their noses, their eyes… "Search the rooms."
The men who had broken into her apartment were from The Org, the underground group that Nicolae had stolen the delivery receipts from. They had quickly tracked Jade down. A few more men were making their way toward the park. Their spies had overheard much of the two's conversations at the bakery and outside Jade's apartment.
"They're not here, Saito." The other man had come back after searching through the rooms in Jade's apartment.
Saito, the man who had been left to watch her while the other man was searching, sighed. "Where're the files, Jadie?" he asked, keeping a steady eye on the teen as he removed the cloth tied around her head.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Jade spat out, "I don't know anything about files. Nobody gave me any files." She glared at the two men. "I don't think you have the right house—or the right girl, so why don't you just let me go and leave?" Jade's voice rose as she went on, and the men had to hurry to silence her before she alerted anyone.
"Oh, so Nicolae didn't give them to you, did he?" Saito said. He gestured to his companion, "Let's take her to HQ, and see if they had any luck with the tinker. This baby should draw him in."
His companion nodded and pulled Jade to her feet. "You're coming with us," he grinned.
I am soooo lucky I forgot to wear my PJ's, was Jade's last thought as they pulled her along with them into a car waiting outside.
Nicolae heard them coming, so he wasn't anywhere near his trailer when they came for him. He had saved whatever he could from their search; the most valuable items that were in his trailer were now in his bag. He was about to make his way to his hideaway when he remembered Jade.
Oh crap.
He ran, sprinting as fast as he could to Jade's apartment. He got there scarcely thirty minutes after they had taken her away in their car. He tried the door—it was still unlocked.
"Jade?" he called out as he stumbled in. The lights were still on, revealing the mess the men had made while they searched the apartment. There were papers everywhere, and even the furniture was in disarray. The man who had searched was unkind.
Nicolae cursed and made for Jade's bedroom. Maybe they didn't bother her…
There was a note waiting for him on Jade's bed.
If you want her back, come get her.
You know how we play, right, Nicolae?
--The Org
Nicolae knew where The Org's headquarters were, so getting there wasn't his problem. What he was worried about was getting out. They would be waiting for him, and Nicolae shuddered when he thought of what they would do to him…and to Jade. He knew their play; he knew it too well to know that he had to act quickly.
The man drowned himself in thought.
Going there by himself was not an option, unless he didn't mind being stuck in a cellar of theirs forever. There was nobody he could turn to for help either. Although he did his best to appear carefree and nonchalant about his business and other people, he didn't want anyone else to be involved.
He might simply exchange the files for Jade, but he knew they wouldn't let him or Jade go that easily…and then it hit him.
The Guard!
The Barton Guard would certainly do the trick, once they knew what The Org was up to, but it was risky for him as well. He certainly didn't want to explain how he got hold of the files; those alone would arouse the Guard's suspicion.
A disguise and an escape route were needed, and enough guards to distract The Org's members enough so that Jade and he could escape.
Nicolae sighed as he closed the door. It was time to get to work.
Jade was squirming as she was taken into the headquarters of The Org. It was through the doors of a faux club called Remyx. The two men took her behind the bar and through a door that had a sign with "Staff Only" hanging above it.
The door led into a different complex behind the club's front. Jade was taken into the room at the end of a long corridor, where a woman sat behind a desk.
She had shoulder length red hair that framed her face. Her nails were long and painted as well.
"Is this his friend, Saito?" she asked as they came in.
Saito nodded.
"Hmm." The red-haired woman stood and walked over to take a good look at Jade. "I don't know what he's thinking dragging this kid into our business…Keep her in the spare room."
Saito nodded and took hold of Jade's arm again. Her wrists were still bound, so she couldn't exactly do her taekwando to save herself. Reluctantly, she trudged along as she was led to another room in the building.
It was smaller and was furnished only with a chair and a side-table. Jade stumbled into the room as she was pushed into it, collapsing onto the tiled floor with a grunt as the door was locked behind her.
Jade was scared, although she'd never admit it to anybody. Her thoughts went back to Star and Masumi. How would they find her if Nicolae abandoned her? What would happen if Nicolae never came?
She rubbed her wrists, grateful that they weren't tied up anymore. The ropes had made nasty marks on her skin. Leaning against the wall, Jade started drifting into sleep.
She had no idea what time it was when she woke up. The only change she saw in the room was food on the side-table. Jade was grateful; they had no intention of starving her to death.
The bread was dry, maybe a day or two old, but the teen was too hungry to care. She washed down her breakfast—or was it brunch? With the glass of water that sat beside the plate of bread. It tasted stale, as if it had been left standing for hours.
The door opened again a few minutes after Jade was finished eating. The man who had accompanied Saito to her apartment gathered the plate and the glass silently, only greeting Jade with a small nod.
The man had turned around and was caught surprised by Jade's attack. His head hit the door with a quiet thump, and as soon as he was out of the way, Jade was running down the corridor.
Nobody had seen her yet, so she ran on. Her luck ended when she got to the door leading to the streets. The doors were locked; a chain ran around both handles, preventing them from being opened from inside and outside. Jade cursed her luck.
"It looks like we have a feisty one here," chuckled the red-haired woman from behind her. She was standing behind the bar, with a hand on her hip. "Come on, kid. I don't want to have to use my baby." Her other hand held a handgun. She beckoned with it now. "Come on," she said, "Let's get you back in your room."
"Who are you?" Jade asked.
"They call me Ms. P," replied the woman, "for President."
Knowing she hardly had a chance, Jade reluctantly surrendered. She walked back to the room, feeling the woman's satisfied stare burning into her back.
"There's a good girl," said Ms. P, locking the door.
The box with the files was tucked under his arm as he made his way toward the entrance of The Org's headquarters. It was early evening of the same day that Jade was abducted.
The lights in the club were beating rhythmically with the music blaring. The club was quite crowded, as was the bar.
He walked up to the bar and asked for "Johnny Wrinkles." The bartender grunted and let him in, without even asking for his name. Nicolae walked into the corridor without any hesitation. He walked straight up to the last door and opened it.
Walking in, he was greeted by Ms. P.
"Oh look who's come to visit us," trilled her voice. Her gun was displayed on her desk; Nicolae gave it one good look and spoke.
"Where's Jade?" he asked. "Here's your stuff." A serious light had come into his eyes. He couldn't play around now.
Ms. P nodded to Saito, who stood nearby. The man took the box and left it on top of her desk.
"And Jade?" he asked again.
Ms. P smiled. "On my bracelet in my jewellery box," she said smugly.
3, 2, 1…
The alarm sounded throughout the building. A smile crept across Nicolae's face. "Gotcha." He ran—
1. The files in the box were fakes.
2. The Guard was infiltrating The Org's headquarters.
3. Nicolae snatched the gun from the president's desk and ran out into the corridor.
"Jade? Jade!" he called out at the top of his lungs. The guards were pouring in now, and Nicolae barely heard Jade's voice shouting back over the heavy footsteps echoing in the corridor.
"Jade, you in here?" he called out as he neared her door; Jade kicked the door in response.
Nicolae used the gun's hilt to smash the doorknob, and the door swung open. He reached for her hand, "Let's go."
Jade nodded, no longer trusting her voice to hold. She took his hand, and they ran away. They didn't stop running until they reached Caking Your Day, which was some blocks away from the chaos at Remyx.
They sat at the table they met at the day before. Silence reigned for some minutes as the two tried to regain their breath.
"I guess sorry won't do, will it, Jadie?" Nicolae was first to speak.
"You're right, it won't," Jade whispered.
"Then I'll go ahead with my plan." Nicolae tried to smile, but it wasn't a teasing smile, nor a happy smile Jade had seen the day before.
"Plan?" Jade asked, confused.
"Since a sorry won't do, and the Guard will be looking for me, I'm moving away for a bit." Nicolae looked away, and the dark hid his face for a bit.
Jade bit her lip. "I didn't mean it like that. I mean, I'm alive, aren't I?"
"Yup, for now. They'll be looking for you again, you know that? And they'll play it nastier. They get nastier the longer you make them wait, which is why I…" Nicolae trailed off. "Anyway, I gave your details to the Guard. They'll be looking after you for a while, since I won't be here to do it. Besides, you know taekwondo. You should be fine…Just stay out of downtown, you hear?" He tapped Jade's chin. "C'mon, I'll take you home."
1. Nicolae was gone the next morning.
2. Jade had her book.
3. Three weeks to write it.