Blake sat across from the Schnee sisters, with Yang at her side and not at all very sure about how she'd managed to end up at a table with all three of them. Usually when it came to work, she would have asked for Yang to leave, but now…
Well, she wasn't sure how it had happened, especially when she considered her already existing reputation that she held with the Schnee family. For Weiss to welcome her was one thing, for another Schnee was something else.
And to make things more awkward, she wasn't alone.
It left her completely unsure as to what she was supposed to do or say.
"So." Weiss said, stirring her coffee with her spoon and staring Blake down. "You said that you wanted to talk to us?"
"I did." Blake said, turning in her seat just slightly by looking over at Weiss. She did her best to ignore the way that Winter Schnee was staring her down and looking entirely unhappy with the situation. Blake was surprised that Winter had even agreed to this meeting. She was even more surprised that Yang was still there. "I figured that I could ask you both some questions."
"We understood that." Winter responded in an unamused sort of deadpan. "But you are yet to explain what you want to do with us."
"I'm sorry for that." Blake replied, since it was obvious that there was something else that she needed to do or say. "My name is Blake Belladonna. I'm a reporter with-"
"The Fang." Winter finished, her expression wholly unamused. "I expect that you've come to wheedle your way into all of our family's business."
"Winter-" Weiss started, leaning in slightly and staring at her sister in disbelief. "Blake isn't that bad. She just wants-"
"To tell the truth." Blake cut Weiss off, finishing the sentence for herself because if she was going to be explaining herself to Winter, she needed to be able to do it herself. "I can assure you that I'm just trying to keep the public informed on your family's company."
"By smearing us, no doubt."
"No." Blake sighed. "While there are still obvious issues, I'm just looking to give a clear picture of what will happen if-"
"If our father dies." Winter deadpanned. Her eyes- darker blue and more muted than Weiss' were narrowed dangerously. "Yes, we know."
And really, there wasn't that much that Blake could do to deny that charge. In fact, it was completely accurate, as poor as the whole thing sounded. She sighed and looked down into her own drink. Of course, there were no answers to be found there.
"Yes." Blake responded after a moment. "I was hoping that I could get some more up to date information with regard to his condition, and that I would be able to get your perspective on things, if possible."
Weiss and Winter exchanged a look, like the two of them were trying to communicate something between the silently. Blake could partially imagine what the conversation had to be about, but she also didn't want to be the one to go ahead and pry on the topic.
It wasn't really her place to do that, after all.
Winter snapped her gaze back over to Blake. "Would you mind giving us a moment to speak?"
"Of course not." Blake replied. If anything, Winter and Weiss slipping away for a few minutes meant that she was going to have a chance to really figure out what she wanted to ask the older sister while she still had a chance to. She was sure that Weiss would remain at least somewhat accessible in the future.
She watched as Weiss and Winter slipped out of her line of sight and reached for her phone to check that she had everything she needed. Sure enough, there was her notepad and pen tucked away in her pocket, and her phone was there in case she ended up needing to record something.
That was all that she needed. Blake was sure of it.
She looked over at Yang and sighed. "I think you should probably go." She explained calmly. "I don't know that…" Blake's eyes flicked back over to the Schnee sisters. "If this is a good idea."
Yang nodded and picked her head up, craning her neck to get a good look for herself at where the Schnees had walked off to. Yang sighed and pushed her yellow hair out of her face before getting up. "Yeah, you're probably right." She said, looking down at her drink and frowning. "I'll see you later, right?"
"Of course." Blake replied. "I'll find you. Just… Soon."
Yang clicked her tongue. "Alright." She said as she stretched and began to make her way out. "See you."
"Right." Blake murmured as she watched Yang leave.
After that, Blake waited for a few more minutes before the sisters came back to talk to her again. She took every chance that she was there to write down the questions that came to her mind first that would be worth asking.
Winter was going to be hard to deal with. While asking about her apparent estrangement from the Schnee family would ultimately be the holy grail as for as questioning went, Blake didn't think that she was going to be able to actually get an answer to that question.
Blake checked her phone and saw that the sisters had been gone for two minutes. That couldn't have possibly been good.
The sound of Weiss and Winter re-seating themselves across from her was all that Blake needed to snap her back to attention. Blake stared between the two of them and found that neither looked happy.
Something had been said, and Blake didn't exactly want to know what had been aid.
"Welcome back." She greeted the two sisters because that was going to be her best opportunity to get back in good with them. "Have you come to a decision?"
"We have." Weiss confirmed, sitting up tall with her back straight. "But if we're going to talk, it'll need to be done in a more secure location."
Secure location? That wasn't something that Blake had really been considering. In theory it meant that she was going to be stuck interviewing in a car- which was suboptimal at best, or she'd be dragged to a place of the sister's choices. Blake knew perfectly well that she wasn't going to be welcome at the Schnee Manor.
That was obvious.
"I'm willing to do that." Blake said, her eyes flicking between the two sisters. "But I'll have to leave it to you to select a place for that."
"We already have." Winter answered, sitting up tall and managing to stare down at Blake down her nose despite the fact that they were the same height. "I have a hotel room in the city that we can use."
Blake blinked, because if there was anything that she hadn't been expecting, that was probably it. Despite the fact that Winter had been more or less disowned, there had been a part of Blake that had been expecting to learn that she was still staying at the Schnee Manor.
So the reporter did her best to hide her surprise from the sisters. "I can meet you there if you would prefer that."
The hesitation wasn't something that Blake could say that she wasn't expecting from the sisters. Of course, the two of them were coming to her looking to get an upper hand if they would interview. Blake was going to be able to work with anything, but this had the chance to seriously end up out of her favor.
Blake really didn't want to think that Weiss would do that to her, but in that moment she couldn't be too confident in much of anything.
Blake knew that. She was fully prepared for whatever was to gome.
Weiss and Winter exchanged a look, both trying to find words for something before Weiss took control and looked back to Blake.
"Do you think that you could meet us tonight?" She asked quietly. "We can send you the information for the hotel, but it would really be best if we did everything later."
And that wasn't such a bad request, Blake thought. To go out that night, there was the chance that Blake would end up frustrating Yang or Ruby, but this was probably going to be one of the most important nights of her life.
Blake had absolutely no intentions to let that slide by.
"I can do that." Blake replied with a slight shrug. "I hope that you'll be willing to answer questions for me, though."
"We will be." Winter said, her voice hard as ever. "But we reserve the right not to answer should we find a question inappropriate."
"Of course." Blake responded. That was expected, at least on some level. "I can also do whatever I can to ensure your anonymity."
"In addition-" Winter began, leaning in slightly. "I want for us to have our driver Klein present for this meeting."
Normally, that was something would have set off alarms in Blake's mind. However, the fact of the matter was that she not only knew Klein Sieben (who Blake had to assume they were talking about. It wasn't exactly a common name,) but also had actually talked to him in the past. If anything, it meant that she wasn't being placed in a situation that was meant to destroy her.
That was all that she really needed, in the end.
"Okay." Blake breathed with a slight nod. "I can meet you tonight."
"Very well." Winter said, standing up and standing tall, still looking down at Blake in a way that Blake really didn't like. It felt too condescending, in so many ways that she couldn't stand. Winter and Weiss both had wealth and class on their sides, but that didn't make them any better than Blake. She had absolutely no intentions to let them think that they were above her.
Weiss looked at her sister, then at Blake in an almost apologetic way. She stood up herself, sipping her drink. "Winter?" She said quietly. "Do you mind if I catch up with you in a moment?"
"No." Winter responded, her gaze flickering between Blake and Weiss before she made off on her own.
Blake stood up and tucked her things back away in her jacket before letting herself fall into place next to Weiss. "What is it?"
"I'm sorry." Weiss said quietly, looking Blake in the eyes. For the first time, Blake realized that Weiss had lovely light blue eyes. Somehow that was something that had never registered in her mind before. She liked them. "About her."
"It's quite alright." Blake answered, putting on a soft smile for the heiress. "Did you talk her into talking with me?"
"A little bit." Weiss admitted, smiling meekly. "I'd like to be able to talk to you a little bit later if I can, though."
"Of course." Blake said, checking that her phone was in her pocket. If the two of them were going to talk privately later, then it was going to be massively important. After all, it was the best way for her and Weiss to get in contact. "If you need me, you can call me."
Weiss nodded, reaching up and brushing her bangs away from her face almost nervously. "Of course." She took the first step away, looking over at the area where Winter had walked off in. "So I'll see you tonight?"
Blake wanted to read into that and make it feel like Weiss was asking her so much more than she really was. She schooled her expression into calm, smiled, and shrugged. "I guess you will."
"Right." Weiss took a few more steps away. "I'll see you later tonight."
And with that, Blake watched as Weiss moved out of her direct line of sight and fell into place beside her old sister. The two of them seemed to exchange a few words, and then Weiss and Winter Schnee were off to finish what else they had been up to that day.
Blake knew that her gaze lingered for a little bit too long, but she was soon to turn away so that she could to figuring out where Yang had wandered off to.
It didn't take too long, and when the two of them were gathered back together, Blake did her best to deflect any questions before they could become a problem.
"So tell me about this Blake Belladonna." Winter asked as she sat in the chair on the other side of the hotel room. Most of the day had been long and exhausting, and Weiss was glad that she was finally able to calm down and relax with her older sister.
Between seeing Blake, and going in the check on their father, it had been hard. Weiss had needed to also slip off to the manner for dinner with Whitley and her mother, but that hadn't been such a big problem. Now that she was there with Winter it should have been a chance to unwind.
But they were supposed to have a meeting with Blake that night, and that was huge.
And really, Weiss didn't fully know how she felt about that. It wasn't as though Blake was going to show up in her leather jacket and probably on a motorcycle that night or anything.
It wasn't as though Weiss hadn't caught herself daydreaming about the reporting once or twice earlier in that day.
And really, she didn't know what was wrong with her. All that she knew was that she wanted to talk to Blake again when she got the chance.
Preferably one on one.
"What do you want to know about Blake?" Weiss asked, blinking and turning to face her sister instead of looking out the window. Blake was going to be coming soon, but standing there and waiting by the window wasn't going to make her arrive any faster.
Winter was sitting on the bed, her bag unzipped next to her as she took the chance to remove some things from it that she wanted. Everything within was folded and kept immaculately well. She was also watching Weiss expectantly.
"I ran into her at the airport." Weiss answered truthfully, leaning against the wall and letting her fingertips brush against it. "When I arrived back in Atlas, she was there waiting for me to arrive. Klein said that he knew her, and..."
"So you just agreed to speak to her?"
"Not exactly, Winter." Klein said, stepping into the room with a tray of coffee cups in his hands. They'd sent him out several minutes earlier to make sure that they would have something to enjoy, and seemed to have been glad to fulfill that. "Weiss initially rejected the request for an interview."
"You did?" Winter asked, focusing back on her little sister. "I can't say that I expected that."
"I don't think that I wouldn't have called her without a good reason for it." Weiss said, holding her expression still before she took a few steps forward before seating herself on the bed next to her older sister. "She just wanted to know about father."
Winter stared her down and let out a quiet sigh. "Am I correct in assuming that the two of you haven't only discussed father?"
And really, Weiss knew that there was no good way that she was going to be able to go about denying that. It was a claim that she couldn't hope others would end up seeing past. She pursed her lips and sighed heavily before finally giving an explanation.
"That's correct." Weiss finally said, keeping her head down and trying to ignore the way that her sister was able to stare through her. "I didn't tell her about you."
"Does she know anything about me?" Winter asked. "I want to know what i'm going to have to expect when she arrives."
And that was something that Weiss couldn't really give an answer to. It was true that her sister's status was somewhat of a dirty secret, but it was also public knowledge.
It was just that the public didn't know all of the specifics, and Weiss was beyond glad for that because of what the public knowing more would ultimately mean. But Blake...
Blake wasn't a part of the general public. She had contacts within the Schnee Dust Company, and had even spoken to Klein before. Weiss had never said anything beyond what was publicly known, but Klein...
He passed the two cups of coffee that he'd gotten them to both of the sisters, and as soon as he was done he removed his own drink and stood up tall. Weiss and Klein exchanged a look, and when Klein only looked calm, Weiss was sure that she knew.
"I don't believe so." Weiss finally gave an answer for her sister. "Blake really isn't that bad."
Winter stared Weiss down, searching for something in her expression. Whatever it was, Weiss didn't think that she'd managed to find it. "Very well. If she doesn't know the whole story then that is a good thing."
"Right." Weiss sighed. Outside, she was able to make out the sound of the roar of a motorcycle's engine. It was entirely possible that it meant nothing. Plenty of people in the world drove such vehicles.
Including Blake.
The feeling of Weiss' phone vibrating made her heart jump in her chest nonetheless.
Blake had arrived.
Weiss looked at Klein and opened her mouth to ask him to go down and get Blake, but stopped herself before she could speak. Maybe it was for the best if she went down and talked to Blake herself. Directly.
"Excuse me for a minute." Weiss requested, standing up and stretching slightly before heading to the door. "I can stall her to make sure that the room is as you want it."
"Of course." Winter said, standing up and shoving one or two things back into her bag almost aggressively. Weiss didn't allow herself to linger for a second too long before leaving the room and heading to the elevator, and then down to the lobby where she was supposed to meet Blake.
Sure enough, Blake was there. She hadn't bothered to change into anything more formal than what she had been wearing earlier that day, and Weiss didn't know how that was going to go. Maybe Blake hadn't wanted to risk ruining her nicer clothes when she was going to be riding her motorcycle that night?
"Blake." Weiss greeted her, standing tall by the elevators with her hands clasped behind her back. "You made it."
"I did." Blake said, cocking a smile and reaching up to unzip her jacket as she advanced on Weiss. "I hope I'm not running late."
"You aren't." Weiss replied, resisting the urge to take the chance to rock back and forth on her heels. She needed to keep up appearances, especially now. "We'll talk on the way up."
Blake understood, and soon enough the two of them were packing into an elevator and closing the door behind them. Weiss stood against the wall, giving a respectful amount of space between herself and Blake.
She needed to say something.
"Winter needs a minute to clean her room up a little bit, and then she should be ready." Weiss explained calmly. "Klein is there with her, but..."
She shook her head. "Blake, how much do you know about my sister?"
"The normal things." Blake responded, raising an eyebrow. "Name, age, date of birth, place of employment. I know that she's been removed from the line of succession for SchneeCorp, and can only assume it's because of her leaving for the military."
"And nothing else?" Weiss asked, leaning in towards Blake slightly. "Because I don't know what we're going to end up talking about in there, but there are things that she won't touch." Weiss hesitated. "And I won't address them either."
"I understand." Blake murmured as she reached for her pockets to remove some of the things that she needed. "You both have the power to refuse a question if I ask one that you can't answer."
"Of course." Weiss said, pausing. There was so much that she should have gone ahead and said to explain herself. Of course, Blake probably had been able to assume so much of it. Blake probably was running on the assumption that loss of anonymity would mean that Weiss' position would be lost, or that it would worsen things with regards to Winter.
But still, Weiss had to wonder.
An awkward quiet fell over the elevator, and Weiss needed to think of something to say to her... friend? Acquaintance? She wasn't quite sure what Blake really was to her.
Did it really matter that much?
"Thank you, Blake." Weiss finally sighed. "For being willing to work with our demands."
Blake stared her down, something unreadable on her face that Weiss wasn't sure that she wanted to be able to identify. Somehow that felt too dangerous, and Weiss wasn't quite sure why. Why would Blake looking at her feel dangerous? Especially over something as simple as thanks.
But Blake's response was a surprise nonetheless, and Weiss didn't know what to say.
"Why are you thanking me?" Blake asked, her eyes narrowing. "You weren't really the one making demands."
"I know." Weiss replied, looking away and feeling a little bit embarrassed at the very least. What else was she supposed to do or say at this point? "It's just that it felt like we were asking you for a lot."
Blake shrugged. "For me, turning it down wouldn't have done me any good." Blake explained calmly. "This has the potential to being one of the more important interviews that I do in my life and I don't intend to let that go."
"Right." Weiss said, snapping to attention as the elevator reached the floor that Winter's room was on. "I don't know whether or not you're going to have to wait at all before you're able to talk to her."
"I was hoping to get to talk to both of you." Blake replied calmly. "Having both of you would be really useful."
Weiss paused, thinking hard on it. She absolutely could have gone ahead and told Blake that she would have been happy to participate in the interview personally, but Weiss didn't really feel as though that was something that she could really promise. Not with so much at stake if she did.
"I would like to." Weiss decided to explain herself. "You know that it isn't as though I can just do this, potentially give up my name, and then not be punished for it."
"I know." Blake said, stepping to the front of the elevator as the door opened in front of the two of them. "And I understand that."
Weiss smiled softly, lingering just a step or two behind Blake for a moment before speaking. "Thank you."
Blake just looked back at her, smirked, and walked out of the elevator so that Weiss could walk the two of them down to Winter's room.
When Blake had arrived at the hotel for their meeting, she hadn't known what there would be to expect from Winter Schnee. She had been expecting the seat of opulence, something that truly spoke to the woman's heritage.
What she found for the woman's room was completely opposite that. In a way, seeing either Weiss or Winter in the normal hotel room felt out of place. Neither of them had likely spent time in a place like that in their lives.
The fact that they were being accompanied by a butler made it seem almost absurd that the three of them were there.
Winter picked her head up to stare her down, and Blake returned the look. It was almost as though Winter had all but completely forgotten her sister's presence in that moment. It felt like a challenge, and there was a rather present part of Blake that insisted that she take it and give the best interview that she could.
"Hello." Winter finally greeted her, standing tall and bringing her hands together behind her back as she fell into parade rest. "I see that you arrived on time."
"It wasn't a problem." Blake replied, letting her eyes flick around the room quickly so that she could get a good idea of what there was for the two of them to deal with. There wasn't much in the way of furniture in the room, that meant that there was the potential that her job was going to be harder. Blake supposed that she could use a dresser or sit on the floor so that she could write, but that wasn't ideal.
She was glad that she had her phone on her so she could record things.
Winter was silent for too long, like she didn't have even the slightest idea as to what she was supposed to do or say before she finally let herself jump into the conversation. "Very well." She said, glancing around the room herself. "I suppose that we should set the terms of the interview."
And oh, how Blake didn't like how that was one of the things that Winter wanted. She had been planning that the two of them would be able to just go ahead and pass over questions that wouldn't work as they came. Apparently Winter wasn't going to let that happen.
"Right." Blake said, standing up tall. "I assume that you want to be anonymous."
"I would prefer it if I can." Winter replied. "But I may be able to be swayed away from that."
"Somehow I doubt that'll happen." Blake said calmly with a grimace. "You are aware that if questions get close to your family, it will be hard to pass over the fact that it is information that the general public would have no access to."
"Then claim that I am close to the family." Winter snapped back. "That's believable."
"It is." Blake muttered. And really, it was. She could absolutely go ahead and claim that her source was someone close to the Schnee family. It was the excuse that she'd used with regards to Weiss, but the odds that things added up and got dangerous was there.
What if it came to a situation where the Schnees began looking through their staff to try and figure out who was causing them trouble? Would their servants all get fired for it? Blake didn't know but if things would end up that way, she didn't want to find out the hard way. Not when she was already having trouble getting both of the sisters to work with her.
Winter she was going to have a hard time with regardless, but Weiss would likely turn on her entirely if something happened.
"So do that." Winter snapped, sitting down on the edge of the bed and crossing one of her legs over the other. "Begin the interview."
Blake did everything in her power not to frown, if only because the chance that things got worse was there. She needed to be willing to play along with whatever was going on with Winter if she wanted to get anywhere with this. Of course, that happened to mean that she was going to need to play along in ways that she didn't want to deal with anyhow.
"Right." Blake said, pausing as she removed her phone from her jacket along with her notepad which she opened, dated, and marked a location for the interview in. "Do you mind that I will be recording you?"
Winter's eyes narrowed dangerously, and Blake wished that was something that didn't surprise her. There was going to be suspicion at every corner, she already expected that. It didn't make her feel any less irritated by it regardless.
"Why would you need to record me?" Winter asked, holding her head high and eyeing Blake with suspicion. "So that you can post it?"
"No." Blake deadpanned. "It's a way that I can ensure that I have more accurate information and that will be able to be closer to what was actually said."
Winter cocked an eyebrow and looked over at her little sister. Weiss looked between the two of them and just nodded. That seemed to make Winter relax slightly.
"Very well." Winter finally said.
Blake bit her tongue and moved straight to the recording app on her phone before pressing the start button. It was time to get to work.
"Could you start by telling me about the condition of Jacques Schnee?" Blake asked, because that was really the starting point that she needed to keep in mind with everything that she did.
"He is in the hospital and recovering from a heart attack." Winter said calmly. "I don't know much with regard to his condition other than that it is poor."
It didn't take Blake long at all to realize that Winter was purposely trying to omit details so that she didn't end up giving up information about herself in the process. It was almost admirable, Blake thought to herself but she didn't dare voice the opinion. To do so would be trouble.
"I understand." Blake said calmly, keeping herself to business only as close as possible until she found herself in Winter Schnee's trust enough that she could start asking the harder questions. "Do you have any experience with the inner workings of SchneeCorp?"
"I do." Winter responded, holding her head high and sitting up tall and straight with perfect posture. "Although you will need to be much more specific with regards to that topic."
"Of course." Blake mumbled. "I wanted to specifically ask about the upper ranks. Would you say that you have experience there?"
"I do." Winter said immediately. "I've brushed shoulders with the family and the board a number of times."
And that was a good answer. It was something that Blake could absolutely go ahead and build off of. "And what was your impression of them?"
"Which one?"
"The board." Blake answered quietly, sure that it was going to be the best segway to the family once that topic got brought up. She watched Winter, and after a moment she relaxed and crossed one leg over the other.
"The SchneeCorp board of director is, quite frankly, filled with men that are much more interested in their own personal standings than they are with SchneeCorp itself. It is no secret that most of them had business partnerships elsewhere, and this has been an object in meetings of theirs."
Blake wracked her mind, thinking back to past research that she had done on the board of Directors at SchneeCorp. A couple of names came immediately to mind, and she could vaguely remember specific links that had been dug up over the years. Because of them, SchneeCorp practically had a way into every possibly industry.
"Could you be specific?" Blake asked, blinking and watching Winter. "While that is all well known about, specific examples would be useful."
Winter paused, and she looked over at Winter like she had something that she wanted to say to her little sister. Weiss' eyes widened just a little bit, like she thought that there was something that was being threatened for discussion that didn't belong being discussed. Whatever it was, Blake wasn't sure that she wanted to know.
Finally, she heard Winter whisper something.
"Should I tell her about The Informer?"
It was a name that did actually mean something to Blake. It was the name of one of the many newspapers within Atlas, one that Blake was very used to hearing about in her line of work.
Blake was familiar with The Atlesian Business Informer specifically because they managed to get exclusive interviews with SchneeCorp executives all the time. Blake wished that she could pretend that it wasn't a hindrance in any way.
And somehow the Schnee sisters knew something specific about it all.
Weiss blinked and shifted how she was standing, picking her hands up and actually seeming to hug herself in an attempt to relax. "I don't know that it's the best idea," Weiss said finally, her voice as quiet as she could possibly manage. A part of Blake couldn't help but be sure that Weiss was trying to keep herself from being caught on the recording. "But if you think that it's a good idea-"
"Understood." Winter said, sitting up tall and sighing. She took a long moment, closing her eyes like she was doing her absolute best to relax and sort out her thoughts before she finally allowed herself to speak up and begin to explain herself. "Do you know who owns the Atlesian Business Informer news publication?" Winter asked, as calm as ever.
Blake blinked because that hadn't been the specific line that she had been expecting to go down. She'd been expecting to be told that there was some sort of special arrangement between SchneeCorp and the publication, not to be asked about who owned the damn thing.
"I can't say that I do." She said finally, and Blake couldn't help but feel a little bit bad over it. This was something that she should have probably been able to figure out and come to a conclusion on easily. Knowing thy enemy and all of that. "Do you?"
"The Atlesian Business Informer is owned by a man by the name of Gaines." Winter began to explain quietly. "Douglas Gaines, specifically."
And that was a name that was familiar to Blake. She knew it well, having come across it so many times over the course of her career as a reporter.
Douglas Gaines was a lower ranking member of the SchneeCorp Board of Directors. He wasn't the most outspoken member of the board, and was more often absent from Blake's work than he was present. That wasn't to say that occasions didn't come up where Blake had to look into him, but it was rare.
"I'm familiar with the name." Blake finally said quietly. "He's been on the Board of Directors for several years now, hasn't he?"
"He has." Winter explained. "And I think that if you were to look into the topic, you would find that his entrance onto the SchneeCorp board corresponds with the time when the Informer began getting exclusive interviews constantly."
There was something bubbling under Blake's skin that felt akin to anger, but she wasn't able to let it show. "I'll be sure to do further research into that topic." Blake said in as relaxed of a way as she possibly could before sitting up tall. "Are you sure that this information is current?"
"Very much so." Winter answered, looking over at Weiss again. The younger sister just nodded, and Klein nodded to confirm. "Looking into the Board members should bring you more information on similar connections."
"Thank you." Blake said. She looked over at Weiss, standing against the wall as she was. Somehow the heiress was managing to turn herself into an absolute wallflower through this interview, and that was something that Blake had ever thought would be possible. And it brought her to another question, one that was very worth asking. "Do you know anything about how the Board of Directors is equipped to handle the absence of Jacques Schnee?"
Winter and Weiss exchanged another look, and Klein took a step forward and raised a hand like he was about to step in and try to interject for a moment. Like there was something that he was trying to protect the sisters from.
Surprisingly, it was Weiss that waved his concerns away from him.
"In the absence of the CEO and Owner of SchneeCorp, control of the company will move to a member of the Board of Directors for the interim until he is either able to return to work, or until they are able to work through Jacques Schnee's will to find the line of succession." Weiss explained, almost like she was reading out of a textbook or something similar. Blake couldn't help the suspicion that Weiss had more or less been forced into memorizing those words in some way. "In which case, SchneeCorp is expected to go to one of his two eligible heirs rather than his wife or eldest daughter."
Blake made a note in her notepad to be sure to exclude the fact that Weiss had been the one to fill in those blanks. It provided her a segway, and could easily be attributed to her 'close to the family' interviewee.
There were other things that Blake wanted to address first before things could fall apart or get more involved with the Schnee family, however. Blake blinked and looked between the two sisters before bringing up her next question.
"How does the board tend to feel when it comes to Jacques Schnee's heirs?" Blake asked. It was probably one of those things that strayed a little bit too close to something dangerous. Either way, she had a chance to get information that was going to be able to open doors for her later. "Are they supportive of them, or would it be wise to expect some sort of coup?"
The sisters went dead silent. Winter sighed and sat up a little bit taller and with her back straight. "They are more concerned with themselves." She said finally, making sure not to lock her eyes with Blake's. "Though I doubt that they would go as far as to act on that thought."
"Of course." Blake scribbled down yet another note. She was sure that she was going to need to go ahead and do more research on that later on, but for now, she had her segue. "What is your impression of the Schnee family?"
Winter clamped her jaw shut, and the muscles went almost completely tense before the woman stood up. "They're self-important and uninterested in the good of each other's well-being." Winter snapped, looking to Klein and her sister. "This interview is over."
It wasn't an answer, but at the same time, it managed to be a huge indicator of what Blake needed to know. She was going to have to go ahead and try to get more out of Weiss sometime if she got a chance. "I understand." Blake said, feeling a little bit more than annoyed by the fact that she had only gotten to ask two questions before it was time to stop. "Thank you for your time."
"Of course." Winter responded. "I will be keeping a close eye on your website for this article. If it is not up to my standards and my identity is given away, then I will not be afraid to take action." It was a threat, and Blake wasn't sure how serious it was. Because of that, she didn't want to go ahead and poke at the topic too much and make things worse. "Thank you for your time."
Blake nodded and began to pack her things back up, standing up tall. She was about to go to the door when Weiss looked at her sister and Klein before murmuring a word to them both and slipping away after her.
