Shou
"I know absolutely nothing about it," Saphir said, putting down his nail file and extending his hand to look at his work. "Why would I want to threaten your company?"
"Oh, no reason," Jade countered. "Unless you consider your recent departure from the Malkuth Company ten years ago, your death threat to President Peony, and the bad blood between you and me, there's no reason to suspect you." He glanced at the letter in front of him. "Not to mention that the amount of kanji used in this letter is quite typical of you."
Saphir took the letter and frowned at it. "Why would I make such a blatantly direct attack? It's so...undignified." He pushed the paper back towards Jade.
"You're right; if you were the one behind this, you would have used much, shall we say, flashier methods," Jade said, smiling.
Saphir tried his best to ignore the comment gracefully, but he couldn't help muttering something about 'no sense of style' under his breath.
"Saphir, this is a very serious case," Jade said. "You're a prime suspect considering your past with the Malkuth Company; if the President chooses to involve the police..." He left the sentence unfinished.
Saphir seemed visibly nervous. "I'm telling you, I did not write that letter! As you said, it's not my style." He leaned back his chair and crossed one leg over the other. "Now, I am tired of our conversation. Perhaps you should return to your company now."
"Perhaps I shall," Jade said, eyeing a photo frame on Saphir's desk. The overhead light was shining so that the picture was hidden behind the glare, but Jade knew the picture. Peony had the same one on his desk. "Saphir," he found himself saying, "shall we meet for dinner tonight?"
Saphir was visibly surprised; despite their history, Jade rarely had anything to do with him.
"Where?"
They met at a local cafe; Jade was already waiting at the table when Saphir hastily sat down. They ordered in silence; Saphir was still confused about why Jade had shown sudden interest in him.
Jade broke the silence first. "Where exactly has Mr. Grants been? Is he on business?" He casually refilled his water glass from the jug on their table.
Saphir's eyes narrowed. "Is that what this is? You're going to question me on what's going on in the company so that you can solve your little problem? Well, you're not getting any information out of me!"
"Information? Who's asking about information?" Jade said, his eyes wide and innocent. He smiled. "I'm just curious if Mr. Grants was on a business trip or if he was taking a vacation. I've been thinking of taking a vacation..." He looked off dreamily. "Kanazawa is so nice this time of year..."
Saphir's mood visibly brightened. "If it's a vacation you want, I would suggest going to Australia. It's very popular with honeymooning couples nowadays." He snuck a glance at Jade. "We do a lot of work for a travel agency; I've got connections, I could get us a deal for two..."
"Not interested," Jade said. The waitress brought their food out, and there was little conversation as they began eating. Saphir ate slowly, as if deep in thought. After a moment, he set down his chopsticks.
"Actually, Van isn't on vacation or a business trip; he's been missing," Saphir confessed. Jade didn't look up from his curry, but he cocked an eyebrow to show he was listening.
"We haven't wanted to involve the police, but he's been missing for about two weeks now. Of course, I'm not supposed to know any of this, but Sync talks too much, and Reiner is excellent at picking up the latest rumors..." He folded his hand under his chin and looked at Jade. "Perhaps your mysterious letter-writer thinks the Malkuth Company had something to do with his disappearance."
Jade put down his spoon and wiped his mouth with a napkin. "If that was the case, the letter would have mentioned something about returning Grants. Thanks for the meal," he said respectfully.
"Not if no one is supposed to know," Saphir countered. "After all, it's a secret; no one except Mohs and Giselle are supposed to know he's missing, and..." He looked embarrassed. "You're the first person to know outside the company."
"Doesn't Grants have connections with the Kimlascans? I remember reading in the news that he was a mentor to the President's sons."
"He was," Saphir confirmed, "but there's been tension between the two boys, and something about a marriage, and it's all been very confusing." Saphir was really getting into his element now, gossiping away like the old women Jade's mother used to talk with.
Jade let him jabber on for a while about the two Fabre boys and the daughter of the Kimlascan company and about the drama going on in their lives, but he tuned out the voice and concentrated on the problem of the letter. Despite Saphir's vehement denial that he wasn't involved, Jade sensed that he wasn't telling him everything. Grants' mysterious disappearance was also an inauspicious event. Jade had a feeling that Van was behind the letter, but until he had facts backing up this position, he couldn't press charges.
"So, Natalia has to choose between them, since she can't remember which one proposed to her as a boy, and her father doesn't care which one she marries!" Saphir continued gleefully. "Isn't it scandalous?"
Jade politely nodded; as annoying as Saphir was, he would have to put up with his company for a little longer.
They ended up at a karaoke bar, all-you-could-drink for two hours at a very reasonable price. Jade would have preferred a bar without the singing involved, but Saphir was so insistant that they sing together that he'd let himself be dragged into the establishment.
While Saphir was busy scrolling through the song list, Jade started scanning the wine list, desperate for something strong enough to dull the pain of hearing Saphir sing, but not strong enough to keep him from remembering any information Saphir would give him.
"Two screwdrivers," Saphir said to the passing waiter, who nodded and keyed it into his pad. "It's going to be a good night," he sang gleefully to Jade, who sighed heavily and resigned himself to flipping through the enka songs in the back of the book.
A group of office ladies was doing some Korean pop song, dance included. Jade watched them for a moment, then turned to Saphir.
"So, you were going to tell me more about Van?" he asked. "About the Kimlasca company heirs and his relationship with them?"
Saphir shook his finger. "Not so fast. You have to sing first. No song, no information."
Jade gritted his teeth in the form of his usual smile. "Is that so? How many songs are required for the full story?"
Saphir slyly looked across the table. "Three. You pick one, I pick one for you, and then we sing one together."
Jade took one last look at the wine list and waved the waiter over. "As you wish, runny nose."
