Standard disclaimer applies.
Chapter 2: A promise
By Lady Fenix
The bright blue convertible flashed down the road, zipping past cars and trucks like an angry bee. Loud honks followed the car but fortunately no sounds of sirens, yet.
Mina Arlington cast a glance at the rear mirror, her impish blue eyes taking in the waving fist of the man in the beat up Honda. So she had cut the lane at bit too fast and a bit too close to the guy, but heck if he had intended to drive like a snail then he should have stayed off the highway and taken a country road instead. The point of the highway was so that people could be allowed to drive faster and thus reach their destination quicker.
At the thought of reaching her destination, Mina cast a glance at the slim watch on her wrist. A quarter to eleven. Well she might still make it, provided that is her target didn't put a too big fuss about the arrangement.
"Mina. Mina. Mina. Why do you consistently put yourself into these situations?" Mina sighed and shook her head.
Just then the small crystal angel hanging from her rear window shifted with the movement of the car, catching the sunrays and reflecting it back on Mina's face. It was a gift from Gramps from his last trip to Monterrey. He said it reminded him of her the moment he saw it hanging on the boutique window. The family's own little guardian angel.
As usual Mina felt her lips pull back into a smile at the thought of her paternal grandfather; a man whom in truth had acted more as a father to her and her brother than their real one ever had; a warm loving man with the heart of gold, possessing a sense of chivalry that should of belonged to a knight in mediaeval times.
Yes, the answer to her question was simple. She did it because of her Gramps. Because she knew how much Madame meant to him and how much the family in turn meant to her. It was a tangled web. Then again when it came to the Holdens what wasn't?
At the thought of the eccentric family that Mina was unofficially a member of, the blonde couldn't hold back the grin that surfaced up to her face. There were a lot that could be said about the Holden family and even more about the matriarch, Madame, as everyone called her. But dull was certainly not a word that would be applied to them. This morning's incident was no exception.
"I can't believe you would do that!" The scream, accompanied by the shattering of porcelain drifted through grand halls of the mansion.
While raised voices was not uncommon in the Holden Mansion it was still rare enough that Mina, on her way towards the dining room forgot her hunger and slowed down to listen.
"Really, Marcia. Was that really necessary" Came the slightly resigned voice of Martin Holden.
"Don't try to lecture me about manners, you traitor! Have you completely lost your mind? " Marcia demanded with shriek that made Mina wince even from her distance. Briefly she wondered how Martin's ears were faring.
While retired, Marcia Holden's voice still held the promises that made her one of the most popular Broadway performers nearly a quarter of a century ago. This made Mina even more curious as to why Marcia's has lost her temper.
Silently she crept closer, making sure that the heels of her Manolo Bhlanik didn't make too much noise against the tiles.
"Marcia, you're exaggerating things. Picking her up at the airport does not count as a traitorous act."
"No but inviting her is."
"You forget that it was Madame's wish that she attend the funeral." Martin pointed out mildly. The sound of porcelain clicking and scratching told Mina that he just set down his coffee cup. Knowing him as a creature of habit, Mina could almost imagine him sitting at the second chair to the end by the window, with the eastern sun setting fire on red hair.
"Madame said family members. She hardly counts as one. She and her slut of a mother were thrown out of this home nearly twenty years ago."
"If I were you," Martin's voice came drifting around the corner, "I would watch my tongue, Marcia. If for nobody's sake then Reggie's." The word where phrased like a suggestion but there was no mistaking the steel behind the warning tone. Hearing it and knowing that it meant his patience was wearing thin, Mina quickly jumped out of her hiding place and entered the room.
"Well good morning. You two are up early." Mina greeted them cheerfully and breezed into the room, her famous disarming smile flashing.
"I had some business in town." Martin told her giving her a slight smile in reply.
"Yes consorting with the enemy." Marcia said snidely from his side. Obviously she had been hovering over him trying to make her point clear. Pieces of shattered china were lying on the floor close to the edge of the table.
"Oh, anything interesting going on?" Mina asked arching a pale brow. She turned around leaning negligently against the large table by the wall, the cup of coffee she just poured warming her hands. "Martin's on his way to pick up a spy or what?"
There was no need to pretend she hadn't heard some of the conversation. Plus this way she might even shock them and if there was one thing that Mina was fond of, it was drama. She figured since the act has already started she might as well go with the flow and make the best of it.
"Nothing quite that dramatic." Martin told her and rose from his seat. "I'm just headed for the airport to pick up Rei. Marcia however," He cast his sister in law a glance, "seems to think that is an act of treason."
Mina's eyes widened slightly in surprise. Rei? "She's coming today? I wasn't aware of that."
"Oh don't feel too neglected about that, dear." Marcia told her and cast a cold look at Martin. "Its only natural since Martin made an effort to keep it all a secret."
Martin rolled his eyes heavenwards. "Marcia please. I've gone through this once already with you. I haven't said anything because there had been no opportunity. Ever since the accident, there's been a lot to handle." His voice choked slightly and he took a steadying breath.
Marcia looked at his loss of control with a mixture of resignation and disapproval. No doubt she didn't feel that was a manly thing to do.
"No you just planned on springing that surprise on us on the day of the funeral. Had you planned on giving Madame a heart attack?"
"No, unlike some people I'm not that eager to inherit my mother's wealth." The cold look he gave her spoke volumes of whom he was referring to.
Marcia sucked in her breath in outrage. Knowing that a full blown explosion was threatening to come, Mina quickly intervened.
"Well I think it's nice that she can be here for her father's funeral. After all considering their relationship, she might not have wanted to."
Marcia sniffed disdainfully. "Hardly surprising at all. Vultures always gather around the dead. Why should she be any different than her mother?"
"Marcia!" The sharp command made both women give a start.
Marcia's painted lips thinned in displeasure. "Well it's the truth. Her mother was nothing but an opportunistic social climbing, gold digging manipulating slut who -".
Whatever she was about to say Mina never heard the end of as Martin cut her off. "Whatever happened in the past was between Marcus and Sakura. They're both dead now and the rest of us should just stay out of it."
It was clear that Marcia did not agree with him when she opened her mouth but somehow the look Martin gave her had enough of an impact to make her close it again.
Mina was intrigued. She didn't know much about Marcus' first wife or what had led to the end of the marriage and his estrangement to his daughter. Marcus never spoke of it; in fact he mostly acted like he never had a daughter. Mina always assumed that he was too busy with his own career to care. After all Mina's own father was like that, though worse because in his case he didn't even have a career to focus on unless one counted jumping from one bed to another. The fact that the rest of the family didn't speak of it was not so surprising either. After all Madame was very much against scandals and divorce would have certainly been considered that. Martin's own failed marriage was proof of that. If it weren't for the fact that the man still held a torch for his ex and love for his daughter, Mina would probably not have heard much about them either. As it was now she was the one who often had to run the errands of setting up the meetings between father and daughter through the former husband and wife.
Obviously in Marcus' case more than that lay behind it. Whatever it was though, Mina never had the chance to ask as at that moment, Bentley the ever present and loyal butler, came in announcing that Marcia had a phone call from Miss Alicia. Martin seemed to think it was the perfect moment for him make his excuse and vanished and so once again Mina was left alone to break her fast in that large dining room.
She tried to take her meal in good pace and enjoy the morning sun that shone through the French doors but the emptiness of the place seemed like an invisible hand that pushed her to hurry. In less than ten minutes later she was out of the mansion and on her way back to the guest house.
As she walked across the well managed lawn, Mina mused over the fact that while this place was in reality smaller in size than the mansion on Connecticut, it felt larger. Maybe it was because Gramps and Madame used the other one as their permanent residence and only stayed in this one on their trips to the headquarter of Holden Inc. Holden Inc owned many estates and condos around the world that were used as living quarters for the members of the family and executive chiefs, but to Mina home had always been where those two were and in the recent five years that had been the mansion on Connecticut.
Well, she mused it wasn't that she had really thought she would manage to catch them here. It was just a wild hunch and obviously she aimed wrong. They had chosen to fly back on the private jet at the same time as she had driven to the Island. Of course in situations like this, Jay would probably had told her that she could have saved herself the trouble if she had only bothered to pick up the phone and called ahead. In Mina's opinion that would have taken away a lot of the point behind the visit. A surprise wouldn't be a surprise if she called ahead. Plus phones where just not her thing (not that a lot of electronic instruments were). She preferred to deal with people face to face.
"Mina, a moment of your time, please."
Surprised, Mina stopped just at the porch outside of the guesthouse and waited for the tall man to catch to her.
"Anything I can help you with, Martin?"
Martin hesitated. It was a sure sign that he wanted something. Most probably something that was a bit delicate too. He had a habit of always hedging around the subject like a cat around a bowl of cream.
Mentally sighing and saying goodbye to the warm bath she was looking forward to, Mina opened the door. "Why don't you come inside where there's A.C.?"
Martin followed her to the living room where the sound of Mozart was still playing the background. She realized with a slight guilt that she'd once again forgot to close the stereo when she left for the main house. Bentley would not be happy if he found out. He was a stickler for preserving energy. If it wasn't for the fashion part, Mina would have wagered that he joined Woodstock along with the rest of the hippies in the sixties.
"I hope I'm not keeping you from any other pressing matters?" Martin said as he carefully sat down on one of the two Italian sofas in the room. He was careful not to wrinkle his suit.
Dressed much more casually and thus not bothered with such things, Mina made herself comfortable on the opposite, kicking her sandals off and tucking her legs underneath her. "Not at all. My time, as many in the family has pointed out to me, is filled with nothing but frivolous things any way." She could not quite keep the bite from her tone but she added the smile to take the sting away.
The fact that no one took her acting career seriously, except for Gramps, was something that hurt deep down. Oh they gave their support it was just that no one thought it was something that would last. Half of them didn't think she had the quality in her to make it and the other half thought it was just another fancy she had, that she would loose interest in pretty soon.
Martin blinked and smiled slightly. Once again, Mina was quite startled to see Madame in him when he smiled like that. Appearance wise it was the only thing he had inherited from his mother, unlike the old lady, Martin did not have the shrewdness in mind to become a great business man, nor did he have the back of steel and the sense of ruthlessness that sometimes was needed. Martin was soft, whereas his mother was steel herself. It was only when he smiled that people where reminded that he was in fact, Georgina Holden's middle son.
"You give yourself far too little credit, my dear. It's really admirable you are able to concentrate on your career the way you have to jump back and forth running errands for the family. I for one am grateful for the help you have given me over the years." Martin told her and she could see from his eyes that he was being sincere.
Mina felt her heart soften and acting on her feelings, she walked over and gave him a hug. "Thanks, Martin."
Martin patted her back awkwardly. Physical contact and expression of emotional feelings like these were rare for him and like always he never knew how to handle them. Clearing his throat he said, "Well it is the truth and not because I..ah..need your help that is."
Mina grinned. "Don't take everything Jay say to heart. That brother of mine can be a bit insensitive sometimes. Besides," she added and tossed a golden blonde curl over her shoulder, "he ought to know better than anyone, flattery doesn't always work for me."
Martin shook his head. "I never can understand the two of you. One moment you are like terriers tearing at each other and the next moment you will go through any extent to come to the others defense."
"It's called sibling love." Mina told him with a wink.
"Not all siblings." Martin told her absently.
Mina knew he was thinking about his own estranged relationships with his brothers.
"Every relationship between siblings is different. Jay and I have are just more expressive people. Maybe it's the Arlington genes in us. The Holden's have always been the more reserved ones. That doesn't mean that you don't love each other. I'm sure even Terrence with his gruff ways cares for the two of you. And anyone who knew you and Marcus never doubted your brotherhood."
"He was good a brother. He always looked after me even though I was the older one. I wish," Martin was quiet for a moment and Mina let him be, giving him time to go through his grief. She never realized just how much Martin had loved his brother. Despite having known him for most of her life, it was like watching through an open window and seeing a deeper part of Martin that she hadn't seen before. Not that she had any doubts of his capability of emotional feelings, but Martin was a very private man whom kept his feelings mostly to himself. A middle son syndrome, she guessed.
"Actually it is because of Marcus that I came here."
"Oh, I thought Madame and Kaito were handling all the details concerning the funerals and such." When it came to the clan Mina did not have many objections helping out but she did have something against death. Helping out with arranging a funeral was just her thing.
"Yes, but this is a bit more delicate than that and far more personal."
Mina kept quiet and waited. She tried not to think about what that could be. She certainly didn't want to guess.
"I'm sure you can recall my little disagreement with Marcia earlier?"
The puzzles fell into places and Mina gave a relieved sigh mentally. "You mean about Marcus' daughter's attendance at the funeral?"
"Yes. Like Marcia said before, Rei's presence will be a bit of a problem at the funeral but nevertheless as Marcus' daughter, she has a right to attend. While Madame hasn't said so in as many words, I believe she meant Rei as well when she said all members of the family had to be present at the funeral." Martin took a deep breath. "As things stand, Rei's plane is supposed to arrive today at JFK at one o'clock. It was my intention to head to the office and finish some papers before I pick her up at the airport. Unfortunately something came up at the office, having to the do with the delegation from France. They demand to speak with a member of the family. You know how the French can be sometimes. I seriously doubt that I will be able to make it on time."
"So you want me to help you pick her up instead." Mina finished for him.
Martin looked at her inquiringly. "Will that be a problem for you?"
"Yes."
His face fell.
Mina laughed. "Only because I don't know how she looks like. I don't want to pick up the wrong Japanese. You will have to do the explaining then."
Martin gave a relieved sigh. "Honestly, you and your sense of humor." He smiled and reached for something in the inner pocket of his suit. "As a matter of fact, I do have something to help you out there. Here."
He handed her a picture.
"It was taken on her graduation day. Not exactly the freshest part but according to her grandfather she should look about the same."
Mina looked down at the picture showing a young girl in her school uniform. Her hair was dark and long, reaching to her waist. And here, Mina thought, she was the only one who favored long hair. The color was rich black with purplish hue. It contrasted greatly with her pale skin, which reminded of the colors on lustrous pearl. The most startling feature was however the girl's eyes, it was large and the color could only be described as violet. No doubt about it she was a Holden. They look just like Madame's. I wonder what she would think about that.
"She's beautiful. Oh I wish I had her colorings. Imagine the kind of roles I could cast." Mina mused with envy.
"If you think she's beautiful then you should have seen her mother." Martin told her and rose. There was a look in his eyes that made Mina pause for a moment.
"So can you help me out here? I will be eternally grateful. I know I could have asked my assistance to do it but it just didn't feel right. It's her first time her and considering the circumstances it should be family that picked her up and not strangers. The problem is I don't think I can ask anyone else but you."
Mina smiled. "Sure, no problem."
"No problem, no problem. Damn you, Chauncy. Why did you have to land an audition for me at the last moment?" Mina muttered under her breath as she headed up the elevator on her way to the top floor.
She had every good intention of keeping her word to Martin. The only problem was Chauncy called her on the cell phone just as she was about to drive out the garage, telling her that she managed to land an audition for a semi large role in Vincent De Marco's newest project. The man was a legend in the film industry. If Mina managed to get the role it could be the break she was looking for concerning her career.
Still she couldn't just break her promise.
The sliding doors opened revealing an elegant hallway with art collections, freshly cut flowers and muted ivory walls. Mina tried the door bell. No answer. She banged on the door. Still no answer. She put her finger on the doorbell and kept it there for as long as her own ears could stand and then she called out.
"Come on, Jay. I know you're in there so you might as well open the door 'coz I'm not going anywhere until you do."
No answer.
Mina swore.
Fine if he was going to do it the hard way. She put her fingers on the doorbell and banged her fist against the door. She even contemplated on kicking it but one look at her brand new shoes and she quickly dashed that idea. Her brother was not worth ruining her shoes over.
The hand the suddenly touched her from behind had her climbing in the air screaming. Whirling around with her hand against her racing heart she met the puppy eyes of Angelo, the fateful doorman who acted as security in this building.
"Oh Angelo, you took five years of my life scaring me that way." Mina told him and patted her heart.
"I'm sorry Miss. Arlington. I tried to get your attention you but you weren't listening."
Mina waved a hand. "It's okay. Actually," she gave him a speculative look. "You can be of some help to me now that you are here. Didn't Mr. Arlington give you a spare key for his place in case he misplaced his?"
Angelo shifted his feet uncomfortably. "He did but I'm not sure I should give it to you."
"Oh come on. I'm his sister. It's not as if I'm one of his murderous lovers that he's trying to dodge."
"But the reason I came up here is because Mr. Arlington called down to say he had an unwelcome element that needed to be rid off. I'm not sure it would be such a good idea."
"Oh he did, did he?" Mina's eyes narrowed dangerously. Calling security now was he? Fine, if he wanted to play it that way.
She wiped away the look in her eyes and turned on her charm. Angelo took one look at her and stepped back warily.
"Now Miss. Arlington. Please, he will be very mad at me."
"Angelo…." Mina advanced on him, her eyes shining like diamonds, her face glowing with promise and her body radiating charm.
Angelo did not have a chance. Three minutes later Mina closed the door behind her with a firm click, the charming exterior she had used in front of Angelo gone and in its stead was the determined look of a vengeful angel. Set security on her, did he?!
She strode down the marble hallways, her eyes not registering any of the luxurious decorations and beauty that had kept many other women enthralled as they entered those very doors. Knowing the place inside out, she walked through the maze of rooms and headed straight for the master bedroom at the very end of the penthouse.
She opened the door with such a force that it slammed against the wall with a satisfying volume. From beneath the covers of the huge king-size bed that rose like an island from the floor, Mina could hear the soft muttering of an oath. The weasel kept on trying to dig himself further into the bed.
Mina strode over to the window, minding her step from the clothes littered on the floor, and pulled open the drapes. Sunlight flooded the room. From underneath the green coverlet there was a slight shifting but still no surfacing.
Ok.
Mina took her time to walk over to the stand where a vase held a bouquet of roses. She lifted the vase and went into the bathroom humming under her breath. Gently she took the rose from the vase and poured out the water. She replaced it with new once and took great deal of care in setting the flower back. Carrying the vase with both of her hand she walked back to the bedroom. From underneath the coverlet a distinctive snoring sound was emerging.
Mina rolled her eyes heavenward and shrugged. Still humming she walked over to the bedside, making sure that she wasn't blocking the direct sunlight, bent down, took hold of the coverlet and yanked with all her might.
She had the pleasure of seeing his face writhe and grimace in pain as the sun blazed on his face before she turned her wrist slightly and poured the content in her hand right over his head.
The swearing became a shout and then more cursing and arms flailing and body twisting. Mina took a step backwards and enjoyed the view.
Jaycen Arlington, twenty seven years old, termed as one of the sexiest men in the world by magazines all across the globe at least once a year since he reached his twenties, and working as a the head architect at one of the largest and most prestigious building companies in the world certainly didn't give off any of the style or elegance that he was known for at the moment.
Mina twisted her head slightly to the side. Too bad she didn't have a camera with her. She wondered how much a picture of the golden Adonis with his butt in the air and head on the ground would give.
"Bloody hell, Mina! I'll kill you." Jay roared and groaned in pain at the same time. He had to stop the tugging of the sheet that he had somehow managed to twist himself into during the night and clutch his head.
"Well I wouldn't have had been that heartless if you hadn't sicked the security at me." Mina told him. She could not keep the grin off her face but she figured since he was laying with his face against the ground the chances of him seeing her was null. She was careful of keeping the laughter from her voice.
"If I knew Angelo was working I would have called the cops instead." Jay muttered under his breath and finally managed to twist himself free to rise from the bed.
Mina shook her head. "You know that wouldn't work. I have friends in that precinct too."
"Not on thirty first." Jay shot back over his shoulder as he wrapped in one of the sheet, went in to the bathroom and closed the door behind him.
Mina puffed a breath. "That's hardly in the area. Just because a girl makes a mistake one time and they never let you live through it. I was eighteen at that time, for god's sake."
The sound of water running, told her that she would not get any answers there.
Mina cast a glance at the watch on her wrist. Half an hour left and before her audition and one hour before Rei's flight arrived. She was going to have to hurry, which means she was going to have to sweet talk Jay fast. So throwing ice cold water on him was not the wisest thing to make him cooperate. What was done was done. She would just have to get herself back in his good graces.
She headed for the kitchen and started rummaging around. Strange thing was despite eating most of his meals outside; Jay had a surprisingly well stacked pantry and fridge. It wasn't so hard thinking up what to make for breakfast when there was such variety of choices.
By the time Jay was finished with his shower and entered the kitchen, Mina had a fresh pot of coffee brewed; a few slices of bread toasted and was just finishing off frying the omelet.
Jay gave her a suspicious look when she set the plate of food in front of him by the counter. Instead of taking a seat by the table where she had set up for him, he had opted to sit on one of the barstools at the counter, close to the coffee machine.
"Rough night?" Mina asked innocently and poured herself a cup of coffee too. She might as well make the most use of it.
Jay took one look at her and muttered. "Gutter mind." He took his moment to drink the coffee but he did not touch the food.
"I wasn't thinking that." Mina told him smugly. "As a matter of fact I could see from the lack of female clothing in your room that you didn't score last night."
"Score?" One blonde brow arched.
"Well isn't that how you men phrase it?"
Jay shook his head. "You should stop looking at those soap operas of yours and spend some time in reality. For your information I was out all night on business." He muttered something about crazy Russians and their vodkas.
Mina made a huffed sound. A voice mentally reminded her to keep focus. She glanced at the clock on the wall.
"Jay…"
"Great, here it comes." Jay grumbled.
"What do you mean "Here it comes"?" Mina demanded suspiciously.
Blue eyes darker and sharper than hers, fixed on hers and she was once again reminded of the man she had heard rumors about, the ruthless businessman whom could act like a shark when the opponent showed a weakness.
"You're sucking up to me. At least as far as in your lame harebrained way of thinking."
"What's so harebrained about a loving sister cooking breakfast for her brother?" Mina demanded and set down her cup with an angry click. The coffee sloshed over the rim, giving off droplets of brown liqueur on the gray surface.
"First of all, my loving sister. You don't try to ask a person favor by giving them cancer, which I might add is a certainty by eating your cooking."
He took a fork and lifted the darkened toast.
"So they're a bit dark. Just scrape off the top. It's toast, they're supposed to be colored."
"Golden, yes. Brownish yes. But not coal black. And what about eggs? I don't remember Remy serving burned eggs for their customers, do you?"
Heat stained Mina's cheeks. "Its called well done, you idiot. Eating raw egg is not good for you. Don't you read anything aside from-" At his arched arrogantly look, she clamped her teeth together so hard it jarred her all the way to the back of her mind.
"Oh fine," She threw up her hands in the air. "You win. Yes I do have something of a favor to ask of you."
"Thought as much." Jay told her smugly. "And the answer is no." He grabbed his mug and walked over to the table to take a seat. Lounging back with an arrogant pose, he grabbed the newspaper and started rifling through it.
"You haven't even heard what I'm going to ask yet." Mina gave a strangled sound.
"No but it's not hard to guess. You might like to run those silly errands for the clan but I've got better things to do with my time than play keeper to them. Give it up Mina, they're adults. Its time they started handling their own problems."
Mina closed her eyes and secretly begged for patience. The two of them have had this conversation over and over again in the past, without coming to any conclusion. As far as Jay was concerned everyone should mind their own business. He didn't seem to feel that it was his duty, that he owed it to Madame, if nobody else, to help out with these family situations the way Mina felt.
"Look I don't have the time to go through this with you again."
"Then don't." He turned the page, the sound rustling and cutting the otherwise peaceful silence. As far up as they were, the sound of traffic wouldn't be able to carry up anyhow.
Mina fell down on her knees and pulled the paper down from at the same time so that she could look him in the face. "Will you do it for me? I'm not asking for them I'm asking as a favor to me, your own sister."
He watched her steadily, taking in the begging look in her eyes and in the end he let out a sigh. "Fine. Whatever. Only because you're begging me."
Mina gave him a beatific smile. "Oh thank you, thank you, thank you. I won't forget this." She threw herself at him and hugged him fiercely.
Jay coughed and made wheezing sounds.
"I'll owe for this. You don't know how much this means to me. I swear I'll make it up to you somehow. You know at times like these you're the best brother a sister could ever have?"
She kept on babbling a while longer until she noticed him tapping her shoulder and trying to pry her arms. Then she heard him whisper. "Mina. Air. Windpipe."
"Oh sorry." She quickly released him and threw a sheepish grin.
Massaging his throat at the same time as he shot her a dark look, Jay asked. "So what is it that you need me to do? Mind you I have an important meeting I need to get back to the office to later, so it can't be something that takes the whole day. And I refuse. I absolutely refuse to go on shopping trip with either Marcia, Alicia or Mother. I would have added anything to do with them but I suppose that would be out of the question since eight out of then errands you do are for them."
"Well here's the thing, I promised Martin I would pick Rei up from the airport and then I got this call from Chauncy. She managed to get me an audition for a de Marco movie. Can you believe that? A de Marco movie? We're talking about the guy who won two Oscars in a row plus the Cannes last year, not to mention countless of others awards. This could be my dream come through. I could –"
"Ok, hold it. Slow down a bit." Jay held up his hand. "Who the hell is Rei?"
Mina blinked. She was already visioning walking down the red carpet for the Oscar award next year. "She's Marcus' daughter. She's coming from Japan today and I promised I would pick her up at the airport at one o'clock. Since my audition at half past twelve well that just leaves me…" she glanced at the clock. "Holy shit FIFTEEN MINUTES TO GET READY!"
She bent down and gave her brother quick peck on the cheek. "Ok here's the info on her flight that I wrote down." She pulled out a slip of paper from her purse and set it on the table. "Remember one o'clock. Thanks a bunch. I won't forget this." She called over her shoulder as she ran for the exit.
"Hold on wait a minute." Jay jumped up and tried to follow but it was like trying to catch a whirlwind. He stood by the threshold watching the elevator door close behind her smiling face, a resigned look on his face. Rubbing a hand over the back of his neck he muttered.
"And how the hell am I supposed to know how she looks like?"
AN: I know that things might be a bit confusing right now concerning who is who in the Holden clan and how Jay and Mina are connected to the family. But I promise that as soon as Rei enters the picture things will become clearer. Remember, she is the star in this story, you don't get to know before she does. ^-^ Don't worry an index will be coming up to help you out there and hopefully a family tree on my website.
Oh and I changed Rei's father's name to Marcus instead of James, since I find that name suits him better.
Thank you for your patience and for the reviews. I hope you'll keep having patience with me and this story and follow it to the end since both Rei and Jay has a long way to go before they fulfill their destiny.
Next chapter will be posted in approximately a week or less.
// Fenix