Chapter One – A Precious Theft
Married life, for Miaka, was not what she had ever expected. For one, she had never expected to marry such a pretentious, infuriating, beautiful, sensual ass. She had expected to marry a nice boy and have a few kids, take care of them while her husband worked a typical job. What she hadn't expected was to marry a powerful lawyer, to become a public figure, to be the wife of a man running for public office, and to have one beautiful, brilliant blonde child.
"How are you today, Kaena?" Miaka asked as she picked her daughter up from school, taking her bag and helping her into her seat.
"Bye!" the girl waved to her friends and hopped in. "Hi, mommy, I'm good, how are you?"
"Cheerful as usual. Your papa is waiting for us the restaurant. We have to meet some important people."
"You better be good or papa will be upset," the girl chided, smiling happily.
Miaka sighed. It was her luck that her daughter would take so much after Nakago that she chided her own mother, instead of the other way around. "When we get there, you'll need to change out of your uniform. Papa bought you a new dress for tonight."
"Can I see it!" she hopped in her seat, excited.
Miaka took a hand off the steering wheel to grab the box in the back seat, setting it in the little girl's lap. "Papa thought you would like to have it for tonight, even though you haven't held up your end of the bargain yet. You need two more weeks of extra chores, don't forget."
"I won't!" she squealed happily, pulling a light blue dress out of the box and examining it closely. The dress was extremely flattering, elegantly beaded in the bodice, with a full and swooshy skirt. Nakago, doubtless, had good taste in gifts—she had always been thrilled with the beautiful things he purchased for her.
"Don't forget to tell your daddy thank you, too," she said.
Kaena nodded happily, her blue eyes twinkling. Miaka reached over and mussed her hair, smiling. Sometimes she couldn't believe this angel was hers.
"How was school? Did you get your math test back?" the young woman questioned.
The girl reached for her bag and pulled the test out proudly, showing her mother the perfect score.
"Are you sure you're my daughter?" the woman laughed.
"Mommy, don't be silly," she giggled.
"Oh, look, we're here," she said, pulling into the valet area. She was still not used to valet service—really, she was perfectly capable of parking her own car, but Nakago insisted. "Run on inside and find the bathroom to change. I'll be right along," she said, handing the keys to the valet and grabbing her purse.
Miaka went inside and checked her make-up as Kaena changed into her dress in the stall. She smoothed her hair, now shorter than it had been when Kaena was born, checked her teeth, and when her stunning little daughter emerged from the stall, she took the girl's clothes to the main desk for holding and escorted her little beauty to their table.
"Papa!" the girl exclaimed, breaking from her mother's grip and jumping into Nakago's lap. She kissed him on the cheek and hugged him happily. "I missed you! How was your trip?"
"It was fine, Kaena," he kissed her cheek briefly and helped her down.
"Sorry," Miaka mumbled sheepishly, taking her daughter's hand again and leading her to her seat.
"Gentlemen, this is my wife, Miaka and my daughter Kaena. Miaka, this is my publicist, Yamamoto Jinko, and my campaign coordinator, Suzuki Hokuto," Nakago introduced.
"Pleased to meet you," she bowed demurely.
"Pleased to meet you, as well," they bowed, and took their seats.
"You're Japanese, Gi-san," the man named Hokuto said in surprise, looking at Miaka.
"Yes," she agreed, smiling.
"I have to wonder how you ended up with this foreign fool," he laughed casually, lightening the mood.
"We crossed paths in another country, Suzuki-san," she smiled.
"Do you travel much, Gi-san?" Jinko questioned.
"When I was younger," she responded. "I had a number of adventures."
"Your daughter is quite lovely," Yamamoto smiled kindly at the girl.
As if on queue, Kaena bowed her head with a small blush flushing her cheeks.
"I, for one, am convinced she is not related," Miaka said jokingly, pulling her daughter's face next to her own. "Look at these blue eyes!"
"She looks just like you in the face, though," Nakago said boredly. "And she is nearly as clumsy."
The group had a good laugh and then got down to business.
"Your campaign is going very well. Popularity polls say that you are in the lead at the moment. It is looking probable that you will be elected to the House of Counsillors," Suzuki stated.
"Yes, our publicity involving your desires to become involved in this country have gone well. The people are intrigued by you because you are a foreigner raised in Japan. Plus you are extremely charismatic, when you want to be, Ayuru-san," Yamamoto grinned.
"This is good news. What is our next step?" he questioned.
"Your accomplishments in the judiciary system have already been highlighted, and we would like to appear personal to the people. My thought was an ad involving your lovely family," he continued.
The men chatted among themselves for a few moments while Miaka was elected to do the ordering because of her particular talents.
"Mommy, I need to use the restroom," the girl whispered to her mother just as she began to order.
"Go ahead," she nodded and continued ordering.
The little girl got up from her seat, bowed politely, and disappeared into the lobby of the restaurant. Miaka placed her order and sat back to listen. It sounded as if Nakago was making good headway in his campaign. Elections were in a few weeks and Miaka had overheard businessmen discussing him more than once, usually positively. He was respected for his power in the judiciary system—he had become a district judge three years ago, and had amassed a great deal of respect due to that prestigious position. He was also an attractive, and as Yamamoto-san had said, extremely charismatic character, when he wanted to be. She probably should have forseen this kind of prestige when she married Nakago, or even before. She had known he was a talented man, and he really couldn't stay out of government affairs. The conversation went on for a while longer and the food came along.
Kaena had not returned in twenty minutes time, and Miaka was beginning to worry that her daughter was sick. "Excuse me," she stood up and went to the bathroom.
Pushing the door open, she called her daughter's name and got no response. She went to the desk. "Have you seen a little girl walk past here? She's seven years old, with blonde hair and wearing a blue dress."
"The child you speak of entered the bathroom nearly half an hour ago. I did not see her exit."
Miaka's blood chilled. "Did you see anybody strange enter the bathroom?"
"Certainly not, ma'am. We keep strict tabs on those who enter this establishment."
"Excuse me," the woman said, pacing away hurridly. She returned to the table.
"Where is Kaena? Is she ill?" Nakago asked, his brows lowering in concern. "We have conducted our business for this evening, so we may leave if we need to."
There were tears in Miaka's eyes now. A darkness had flooded her senses and she felt weak. Her hands shook as she leaned over to whisper.
"She's gone," she gasped out, trying not to cry. "She's been taken."
They locked down the restaurant in search of the girl. They called the police. She was no where to be seen.
Nakago held his small wife tightly. "Do you have a security camera in the wash room that we can view?"
The staff, having realized whose daughter had gone missing, was quick to oblige. They pulled the tape and watched it. They saw the girl enter and disappear into the stall. A few minutes later, a suspicious person with a black cloak entered the room and waited by the sink. When Kaena emerged, she was met by the person. A brief struggle ensued.
Miaka sobbed into her husband's chest as she watched her daughter fight off a man twice her size. He hit her head and lifted her listless body, hiding her within the cloak. Nakago's jaw clenched. His beautiful, wonderful child. Had she been kidnapped for ransom?
The odd part came next. Though the man's back was turned to the camera, his reflection was not visible in the mirror that he faced. All they saw was a pair of glowing red eyes. His daughter wasn't carried away, she, and the man in the black cloak, had simply disappeared.