W. A. G. E. R.
Chapter Five
File No. 1799-1889
(VII)
2011.5.3, 12:41pm, London, Trancy Manor.
Sebastian stood on a nearby hill as he gazed across the enormous Trancy Manor below. Tightly gripped in his hand was the morning paper:
"Fall of Trancy, Rise of Phantomhive
… The Trancy scandal cast an unprecedented shadow onto British monarchy. Nevertheless, for some individuals, it was more than just good news. Since the hiring of former Trancy Trust Chief Executive, Claude Faustus, Funtom Corp. has quickly come back to life from its devastating downfall just the previous week. This undoubtedly brought new life to the Phantomhive family, which is still under fierce criticism for their behavior during Prince William's wedding…Claude Faustus, now Earl Phantomhive's new PA, gave a press release on behalf of the Earl yesterday, saying, 'Earl Phantomhive is deeply sorry that Mr. Michaelis has made the decision to leave his post. However, Funtom Corp. respects every employee's decision and despite ' departure, he still firmly believes that Funtom Corp. has a bright future ahead.'"
No, my young master would never say something like this.
It was simply too much for Sebastian.
The letter must be a fraud… My young master would never trust a man like him.
"I am the person he trusts the most…"
He can't wait any longer. He must take back what belonged to him right from Claude Faustus' hands.
Now, his young master was inspecting the properties of the Trancy household with that bastard. Ever since his suspension, Sebastian has never managed to see Ciel in person. This was the perfect chance.
"Young master, I want you to tell me everything face to face."
Right before he made his way down the hill, he heard the sound of a shutter…
"Ah❤, what a feast to the eye…"
Sebastian alertly turned around to find a certain redhead hiding behind the bushes, holding a bright red camera.
"Aww, look at you, Sebby, heartbroken and lost. I'm glad I let Claude go, otherwise there's no way I can capture this priceless moment!"
Another photo was taken.
"Hmm…what's wrong with the focus? Why is it…"
A shadow darkened her sight.
Grell quickly looked up, "What's wrong, Sebby?"
"What are you doing here?"
"Me? Can't you see I'm trying to…"
Sebastian took out his gun.
Grell immediately put the camera away and stood up, "Let me explain!"
"I'm so out of reasons to trust you."
"Don't say that, Sebby." Grell leaned closer, "After all, we've known each other for quite some time…"
Sebastian backed up in disgust and said coldly, "Speak as quickly as possible. I've got work to do."
"Fine, fine…" Grell folded her arms and answered, "The fact is, I am here to teach Claude a lesson. Just like you! What a coincidence!"
Sebastian stared at her rather skeptically, "No way. I will take him down by myself. You Reapers should stay away."
"Why are you so stubborn? You don't even have to put on that face to convince me that you want to kick his ass. I mean, it's not like I am going to stop because you told me to. I just want to leave my footprint on his ass as well. Plus, we didn't suffer any less than you did. If you are not holding back, there's no reason for us to give up, either."
For once, Sebastian agreed with Grell. If he could make good use of this unlikely ally, things might actually come handier. That was when he spotted the car Grell parked down the hill.
"Are you going to the manor to find Claude, ? Mind bring me along?"
Grell's eyebrows twitched nervously, "Are you sure?"
"Sure. It's going to take ages for me to walk there. They'd probably be gone by the time I arrived. What good would that do?"
"Tsk, you sure know how to make the most unreasonable request convincing. I think my heart is racing for you❤…"
"So are you driving me there or not?" Patience wearing thin, Sebastian grew more worried that Ciel and Claude would leave the manor at any moment.
Just then, they heard Claude shouting something from the inside of the manor. They couldn't catch what he said. But his voice echoed in the hills. Birds chirped in response to the ridiculous noise.
Murderous rage burned in Sebastian's eyes as he seized Grell by her ribbon and produced a most horrifying smile, "Mind give me a ride, Sutcliff?"
Grell's heart was beating faster and faster as she quickly pushed Sebastian away, "That is not how you treat a lady. Plus, fooling around with you is not my task of the day."
"Just let me get in your car."
"I never said you couldn't. Just let me do whatever I want when we get there, okay? Otherwise Will is going to be so mad… But maybe I want to keep him that way." She smirked.
XXXXX
2011.5.3, 12:56pm, London, William T. Spears's study.
It was his most private place – his personal workshop.
Unknown devices scattered across the room. Notes and memos spread all over the table.
Right now, the tap on Grell's ribbon has been turned on, and William could hear every single word she said. Grell was right. He was mad. Well, Grell was indeed a very expressive actress, but maybe too expressive. Although he knew better than anyone that Grell was not serious about Sebastian, eavesdropping on her flirty conversation with another man was still more than just irritating. William could feel his heart sinking, in a weird way. In fact, he was more familiar with this feeling than anything else. After all, he had long felt uncomfortable when Grell hit on other men… Or to put it this way, William could never grow accustomed to that side of Grell, unless the man she was flirting with was himself.
Honestly, she's only acting… I shouldn't get so agitated about it. He tried hard to fight the urge to unplug his earphone.
Actually, it was not the only thing that bothered him that day.
On the wall before him were all the CT, PET scans and MRI images of Alan Humphries' heart. There were more coming through the fax machine. But even after examining Alan's heart 360 degrees, his miraculous recovery remained a mystery.
"There must be a way…"
He hadn't slept for days trying to figure this out.
Grell told him not to waste any more time on this, but William refused to accept any solution that involved fantasies.
Kiss of True Love? Honestly…
William was more than motivated to find a logical answer if that meant putting off Grell's silly ideas.
Even if he still hadn't got a clue, he persisted.
However, Alan's heart was already looked at from the inside out. Every possibility had been thought of. Moreover, he did all the necessary tests in the hospital. If the doctors had no idea, how could he have any when all he had were only printed materials?
No, there must be an answer. Did I really try everything? Maybe…
There was one test that Alan missed… Or to put it this way, the one test that he never managed to complete– the angiogram.
William snatched his phone and dialed Eric's number.
"Hello? Is that you, William?"
"Tell Alan Humphries's doctors that he needs another angiogram."
"Wait, why…? Didn't Alan's heart stop last time he did it?"
"Because his heart stopped, the test was called off halfway through. That's why you can't explain why he woke up!"
"Are you serious, Boss? He's really stable now. Isn't this a bit risky…"
"If you don't find out the cause behind his recovery, his heart might stop again. Now which one sounds more risky to you?" William paused before adding, "And, don't call me 'Boss'. We don't have that sort of relationship anymore."
"Sorry…"
"Honestly, don't apologize! I don't need your apology! If you want Alan Humphries to have a full recovery, you should do as I said! Tell the hospital to do another angiogram and then tell me the results!"
William stopped the call before Eric could answer.
Damn..
Why did he even bother helping Eric and Alan? Did he really just want to kill Grell's fantasies?
He hadn't forgiven Eric, he would never forgive him. Now that Alan was stable again, Funtom Corp. might soon arrest Eric… No, he should really get his hands off the matter. Eric deserved it.
"Even if he deserved it, I still wouldn't let Funtom Corp. smear mud on our name."
But Eric is no longer a Reaper.
"He was a Reaper, and he will still be one for the rest of his life. He signed up for this. He can't leave now."
William sighed and picked up the phone again before dialing Ronald's number, "Ronald Knox, report your position."
"On my way to the airport."
"Where to?"
"Orlando, Florida!"
"Vacation at Disney World?"
"Bingo!"
"Honestly, you need to grow up. Cancel your flight. I've got a mission for you."
"No way…" Ronald protested in dismay, "You already called me back once, Boss! You can't just order me about like this!"
"After this one more task, you can do anything you want. Even if you want to visit all the Disneylands in the world, I wouldn't say a word. This is really important."
Ronald had, after all, promised to be an obedient coolie, "Fine, what is it?"
"Fly to Glasgow, now."