Interview
Shane checked his black tie nervously as he took a deep breath, his brown hair falling into his eyes and dressed in a simple business suit. 'I wonder if I've done something wrong?' he thought, waiting in the outer office of the island's governor.
The government building was a ornate structure, a carry over from when the island was a property of the United States, and the outside was weighed down with roman-style architectural flourishes. The inside, however, was more practical with modern hallways and meeting rooms, along with tasteful paintings and other decorations.
"The governor will see you now," Boris rumbled, the tall soldier looming over Shane. If Shane had to pick a stereotypical image of a Russian soldier, Boris would be it from his rough, square jawed face to his slight but still clear accent. Still, there was something in his eyes that made Shane very aware that he was not a man to underestimate.
"Thank you," Shane answered respectfully as he got up, the borrowed overcoat flapping around him. It was a gift from Yomiko Readman, one of the few times she hadn't just given books, and it had a few more unusual additions.
The office was surprisingly plain, with only a few items scattered about along with a good quality desk, a leather chair and a small table to the side with a bottle of undetermined alcohol. Balalaika looked up from her paperwork with a cool smile on her face, her beauty strangely accented by the burn scar on the right side of her face.
"Mr Llewellyn," Balalaika smiled as he entered, "I'm sorry I haven't had a chance to see you sooner." The blonde haired woman offered her hand and he took it, her grip firm but sure.
"Thank you, ma'am," Shane smiled back, "but I'm sure you have better things to do than interview a humble librarian."
"Actually, I make it a point to interview all new academy staff," Balalaika informed him, "considering how important the school is to the island's future." She sat back, "Do you know why we have such a broad variety of students and teachers?"
"Location, I suspect," Shane admitted, "we're close enough to the United States to draw students from there, while also accessible to students from around the world."
"Exactly," Balalaika nodded firmly, "and our goal is to provide a education that rivals anywhere in the world." She studied the man opposite from her a moment, "So, what would you suggest we do?"
Without really thinking about it Shane replied promptly, "Expand the library, probably."
Balalaika looked amused, "Why am I not surprised?"
Shane smiled back, "I suppose you heard the same sort of request from the sciences and other specialties, too." He looked a bit more serious as he continued, "But I really do believe we need to expand the library facilities. The kind of bottlenecks we get over high demand research items bog down other departments, too."
"A point," Balalaika conceded, "but how would you decide to handle it?"
"As you can probably guess I'd like a larger library," Shane admitted, "but I'd also like to modernize as well." He gestured excitedly, "We need improved online access to information sources for students, access terminals within the library itself and around campus and, if we can afford it, a free wireless network."
Balalaika gave him a thoughtful look, her eyes narrowed just slightly. "That actually follows my own thinking on the matter," she said finally, "but I'm glad to get your input." She rose as she said, "Thank you for coming to see me."
Shane rose, recognizing a cue to leave when he heard one. "It was my pleasure," he nodded respectfully, "I hope I was some help."
As he left Shane nearly bumped into a black haired man, dressed in what resembled business wear. "Sorry," he smiled politely, as he slipped by Shane.
"No problem," Shane nodded as he headed through the outer office and puffed out a soft sigh of relief,
Meanwhile, back in the office Balalaika looked up with a smile, "You're as prompt as always, Rock."
Rokuro Okajima, often known as Rock, smiled slightly as he said, "We at the Lagoon company aim to please."
Balalaika chuckled softly as she purred, "Yes, you do." Looking somewhat more serious she asked, "Did Benny finish the deep background check on our dear librarian?"
"Yes," Rock nodded as he informed her, "he forwarded it to your email account. Do you want a summary?"
"Please do," Balalaika nodded.
Rock sat down as he collected his thoughts. "On the surface Mr. Llewellyn's back story checks out fine, but Benny's a bit suspicious that he's too clean," he revealed. As Balalaika raised a eyebrow he elaborated, "Benny mentioned that something so pure white is more suspicious than a bad record."
Balalaika could certainly agree with that, knowing her own cover identity was so squeaky clean it sparkled. "Well, I appreciate his efforts," she said after a moment, "and we'll just have to keep an eye on him."
"Should we bring in campus security?" Rock asked respectfully.
"No," Balalaika shook her head firmly as she explained, "Dutch and Revy already know I'm concerned about why I was pressured to bring him aboard. They'll be keeping a close watch on him anyway."
"Fair enough," Rock nodded. He smiled wryly, "If you don't mind, I need to get to work if I'm going to put a dent in the paperwork today..."
"Have I thanked you lately for becoming my administrator?" Balalaika chuckled as she walked him to the door, "I don't know how I managed without you."
"Every other day," Rock chuckled, "but I appreciate it none the less."
Balalaika watched him go, once again shaking her head in amusement at the changes in her life. If someone had told her ten years ago that she'd become the governor of a island chain and head of a massive university, she would have laughed aloud, yet here she was. She headed back to her desk and sat down, opening up one of several files on her desk.
Mr. Chang's report on Roanapur and Thailand was as entertaining as ever, with much amusing commentary from her old friend. The usual ongoing multi-sided gang war was continuing, with the Triads, Russian mob, the Italians and others fighting it out. Surprisingly the Washimine group was gaining ground, with Yukio proving to be a capable tactician.
'I wonder if I should have spared her life back then?' Balalaika wondered with a wry smile. Of course, while she had known the former school girl had potential, she would never have expected her to become such a capable leader.
A soft knock on the door made Balalaika raise her head. "Come," she called.
Boris opened the door, the tall man nodding respectfully. "Initial reports are in on the activities of the CIA in Roanapur," he said, "it appears that Eda is still their man in the field."
"As expected," Balalaika nodded, "is she still using the Rip-off church as a cover?"
"Actually, no," Boris said as he checked his notes, "she bought Bao out when he decided to sell the Yellow Flag and is currently running it."
"The Yellow Flag?" Balalaika sat up in surprise. The Flag was a bar in Roanapur that served as the main neutral meeting place of the city, as well as a den to cutthroats, murderers and general villainy. On one hand running the place was costly with all the fights and mayhem that broke out, but on the other it would be a invaluable source of info.
"Yes, ma'am. Will we be continuing our arrangement with her?" Boris asked.
"I don't see why not," Balalaika said after a moment's thought. "Once Eda is bought she stays bought. It's a admirable trait."
"Understood, Captain," Boris agreed.
Balalaika sighed as she looked at the paperwork on her desk. "Well, I'd best get back to it," she said, "but keep me informed if anything else pops up."
"Good luck, Captain," Boris smiled at her sympathetically as he turned to go.
To be continued...
Home Life
Yomiko Readman hummed to herself as the black haired woman walked to the housing complex on the edge of the school's property, dragging her usual suitcase of books behind her A high rise apartment building it housed much of the teachers, professors and other staff for the island, with room left over for stores and restaurants on the lower level.
'No bookstore, tho,' Yomiko noted sadly as she walked to the elevator, her nose burried in the latest novel imported from Japan. While not of the same level as one by Nenene Sumerigawa it was good, holding her interest as she walked home.
The elevator pinged softly as Yomiko walked in, instinctively dodging people as she did so. "Tenth floor?" a familiar voice asked.
Looking up reluctantly from her book Yomiko blinked owlishly a moment before the face registered. "Revy-san," she smiled politely at the security woman in the building. Yomiko didn't know much about Revy, other than her black hair and intense gaze, coupled with a terse but not unkind manner.
"Miss Readman," Revy smiled wryly as she leaned against the wall of the elevator. "I watched you walking, I thought you were going to run into someone reading that book," she noted conversationally.
Yomiko shrugged slightly, "It's fine, really. I have lots of practice."
Revy nodded slightly as they reached Yomiko's floor. "I suppose I'll have to take your word for it," she conceded as she watched Yomiko leave, reading her book once more as she strode down the hall.
Unerringly Yomiko navigated her way home, even unlocking the door without looking away from the printed page. "I'm home," she called out as she went inside.
"Welcome back," Nancy Mukahari smiled, the dark purple haired woman looking up with a smile from a diningroom table covered by papers.
Yomiko put her book down, marking the page gently before hugging Nancy, kissing her on the cheek. "I've missed you," she smiled.
"Obviously not enough," Nancy leaned forward and kissed her on the lips, a long lingering kiss as she pressed their bodies together firmly.
"Nancy..." Yomiko blushed furiously, her breath coming just a little faster.
Nancy just smirked as she pulled back a bit and asked, "How was your day?"
Still a little flustered Yomiko sighed, "Not bad. After Shane's meeting a few days ago, it looks like the English department in general will be getting more funding."
"Which is good," Nancy nodded as she stacked up the papers.
"What is that?" Yomiko had to ask, "Information on hidden books or libraries?"
Nancy snorted in amusement, "Nothing so grand, love. I don't want to be living off your pay forever, so I'm applying for a investigator's licence."
"A private eye?" Yomiko smiled, "Like Phillip Marlowe! Or Sherlock Holmes!"
Nancy chuckled softly, having already known Yomiko would draw those kind of comparisons. "Thanks," she said, "but I'm not planning to aim quite that high."
"How hard is it to apply?" Yomiko asked, her eyes widening at the pile of sheets.
"Not as bad as it looks," Nancy said as she hauled the papers over, "but it's all that in triplicate stuff that gets you." She looked over at Yomiko, "Is Shane bringing dinner, or do we have to cook tonight?"
"Shane's getting takeout," Yomiko said with some relief. She paused thoughtfully, "Is it pretty bad that the guy is the only one who can cook?"
"Yes, it is," Nancy laughed.
It wasn't that Yomiko couldn't read a cookbook and follow the instructions, there was another problem. She was such a avid reader that while checking details in the cookbook she would find herself reading along contentedly, getting several chapters in while dinner burned. Nancy, on the other hand, had only mastered relatively basic cooking on her own, and wasn't quite confident in her skills to feed a group.
Not long afterward there was a brisk knock then Shane came in, carrying a fair sized bag of local takeout food. "Everybody decent?" he called carefully, still remembering the time he had walked in on them while they were occupied with each other.
"I'm never decent," Nancy called from where she and Yomiko were sitting in the living room, "but we're fine."
Shane chuckled, his brown hair a bit messier than usual as he headed to the kitchen and unloaded the bags. "I really don't think you're as nasty as you claim," he noted mildly as he set up to reheat dinner.
"She's nasty enough for me," Yomiko winked, making Nancy laugh.
"I saw Revy hanging around," Shane frowned, "is she still keeping a eye on us?"
"We kind of had to expect it," Nancy said with a sigh, reluctantly letting go of Yomiko so they could both stand up.
Getting Shane and Yomiko onto the island and working at the academy had required the calling in of old debts and much string pulling, enough that the head of the island knew about it. She might not be able to trace back the influence but she knew there was a reason someone wanted the two on the island and she was determined to find out what.
"We'll just have to keep our heads down," Yomiko said optimistically, "it's not like we're here doing anything wrong."
"Maybe," Shane said as he opened up the oven and began pulling out hot food, "but the book we're looking for might be something they want too."
"True enough," Nancy conceded the point.
Plates were gotten out and they shared the hot food, sitting down at the diningroom table, Yomiko and Nancy side by side, Shane on the other. He had to fight back a smile as the loving couple shared food of their plates and fed each other.
"You two are almost too cute for your own good," Shane noted the fact mildly as he finished off his own dinner.
Yomiko blushed but Nancy just smiled, winking. "How is the library search going?" Yomiko asked, trying to change the subject.
"It's not in the catalog, but we expected that," Shane said as he took a drink of soda, "now I'm manually going through the shelves to make sure it's not hidden under another cover or a false title."
"Time consuming," Nancy noted.
"Very," Shane agreed, "but if we don't do it and the book turns up we'd look pretty bad."
Yomiko looked thoughtful, "We need to find some old maps of the region and look for any signs of the old library. Or even libraries."
"So far I'm just hearing rumors," Nancy cautioned them, "but it sounds like at least one facility was buried at one point "
"Oh lovely," Shane muttered thoughtfully.
:"That's not the worst rumor," Nancy offered with a evil smile, "the other one I heard was about a island library that was flooded."
"That would be worse," Yomiko winced in sympathy, imagining wading through a flooded building filled with ruined books
"Well, hopefully that last one is just a rumor," Shane sighed as he finished his drink. He got up and stretched before checking the time. "I think I'll go do some reading then go to bed. Catch you in the morning."
"Goodnight," Yomiko and Nancy called, their attention already focused on each other.
To be continued...