Late Night Rendezvous

Having mostly avoided Oto successfully since the discovery of his true identity and the events of the rose garden, Hayami had devised a plan to finally infiltrate the study of Hildebrand Senior without the butler getting in the way. She needed to speak with him and didn't want to wait until the Ball to do so.

So, after stealing away one of Oto’s multiple spare phones, she hid it in a particularly fragile and precariously positioned vase before using her own phone to dial it. Having awoken from its slumber with a sudden buzz, Hayami listened as a distant crash echoed through the late night of the silent manor.

Perfect. She thought to herself as she sprang from the shadows and darted to the large doors that had held her at bay from the secretive man. Now to pick this lock while Butler investigates.

Hayami wasn’t sure of what her plan was once she reached the other side. But as she looked down at the flickering light of a fireplace that revealed itself from under the door, she knew the man was home and that it was her best opportunity to talk with him. She had questions she wanted answered after all.

What happened to his wife? Did her father strike first? What happened to her mother, and were they truly married before? Could Hildebrand Senior help her gain freedom from her father? 

The questions rattled around her head as she crouched, slipping her tools into the old lock as she began to work the mechanism.

Thinking she heard something behind her, she reached for the back of her sweats and the pistol she had been gifted from Oto. She wasn’t sure why she had it with her—why the gun was necessary if she was just there to talk? But at the end of the day, talking wasn’t really Hayami’s thing, and she was happy to be overprepared rather than under.

There was a sudden, satisfying click as Hayami progressed farther than she had gotten in the past. Typically, by the time she had almost finished picking the lock, the butler would have appeared, but it seemed her diversion had worked. So, pocketing her tools, she quickly entered the mysterious space.

Pressing her back to the door, Hayami quietly locked it back in place before breathing deeply to center herself. She immediately noticed the smell of stale air—the smell of a space rarely used and long abandoned. 

Through the dim light of flickering flames, she took in the study of Don Hildebrand. The room was grand, wrapped with dark wooden shelves filled with old books and floored with thick, antique rugs. Green leather chairs flanked a large fireplace that bathed the space in warm, yellow light, casting long, eerie shadows. To the side, a worn wooden desk was positioned at an angle, filled with more books, papers, and a vase of dead flowers.

Hayami began to notice something. Every surface, from the shelves to the desk and table, had a thick layer of dust, revealing years of neglect. The floor, untended for just as long, had few patches of carpet that appeared more worn than others, with the first being against the door where Hayami stood. The other near a distant bookshelf that was currently ajar.

That was when she heard it, the faint creak from the shadows and the familiar voice.

“Miss Hayami.” The Butler spoke, his voice cold and intense.

Hayami sprang forward away from the sound while swinging a fist towards the sound. But her strike would not connect the way she wanted. She was instead met with the Butler’s meaty grasp. He squeezed firmly, cracking her knuckles in his embrace before throwing her to the side. 

Flying back, she tumbled over the desk, scattering dust and paperwork before landing on her feet and eying the man closely.

“Butler?” She hissed, reaching back for the pistol, only to find it missing.

“Lose something, Miss Hayami?” He taunted, holding the weapon up.

With a fluid motion, he dropped the magazine to the floor before racking the slide and sending the chambered round out into the darkness. With a toss of the firearm to the shadows, he smirked while reaching into the breast pocket of his evening coat.

“Or possibly, multiple things?”

It took Hayami a moment to recognize the object in the dim light, but after allowing her eyes to focus, she was able to see clearly.

“Where did you get that?” She gasped, eying the flash drive in his hand.

“The Young Master’s trousers from the day of the accident. Is it familiar to you, Miss Hayami? Or should I say, Miss Kiku?”

Hayami’s heart skipped a beat as she narrowed her vision on the man who stood across from her. While she had no doubts in her mind that she could hold her own against the butler, after seeing him handle a rocket launcher on the yacht and feeling the way he easily threw her across the room, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to fight him. 

Her mind also raced at how and when he discovered her identity.

“How long have you known?”

“Since the moment I saw you on the roof of the overturned import.”

“And you decided to take me in even though I was a rival gangster’s kid?”

“Aside from me and his late mother, the Young Master has never fought as desperately to cling to someone as he was for you in that moment. It would have broken his innocent heart if I left you there to die.” He paused a moment, his stern gaze taking the woman in. "I took a chance."

Hayami swallowed her words as she remembered the day and the hazy memory of Oto’s confession. Quietly, she stood there, observing the Butler and the device.

Then he continued.

“What is on the drive, Miss Kiku?”

“I don’t know.”

He grunted with disbelief, his gaze narrowing on her.

“What was your objective with it and the Young Master?”

Hayami froze, her fist and jaw clenched as she debated what to say. And then she remembered Oto’s confession to her. The truth behind his identity. She wondered how the Butler would reach her truth.

“Install the drive. Kill you both. Be free of the Family.”

Hayami listened as the Butler’s knuckles cracked under the force of his grip. And, though his body tensed, his face remained emotionless. Without warning, he tossed the flash drive to her, watching as she snatched it from the air

“And your current objective?” He asked, his body lowering slightly as he prepared himself for her response. "Still eager for a fight?"

She paused, looking at the object as she thought about the question that had been racking her mind for weeks. Wondering what her purpose was. Whether she could go through with the mission or even wanted to. And then, when she least expected it, the words flowed from her. Not from her lips but from her heart.

“Yes, but now I want to protect Oto. He doesn’t deserve any more suffering. He never did. This was never his fight.”

With a flick of her wrist, she tossed the flash drive into the nearby fire. Her original mission was over, and she had a new one.

“Hmm.” The Butler cocked an eyebrow and smirked as he turned to leave. “Very well. You have done a decent job thus far—"

“Butler. Wait.” She called after him. “You’re not just a Butler, are you?”

“No, Miss Kiku.”

“Who are you?”

“Captain Giles Harding, British S-A-S.” He glanced back at her with a stern gaze. “Moreover. I am Oto’s godfather. His mother was my sister.”

“Holy crap!” Hayami exclaimed. “I knew you had to be special forces. But Oto’s godfather? Now that was not something I saw coming! Does he know?”

The man continued to walk away. “No. And I would like to keep it that way, Miss Kiku. I love the boy dearly and have kept him safe from his father’s machinations for years while investigating my sister’s suspicious death.”

“His father’s machinations? Where is Hildebrand Senior?”

“He only comes but twice a year to this manor. Beyond that, he has no interest in a boy who cannot manage the family business. A business that I ensured Oto could never run, as were Grace's final wish.”

Hayami twisted her head as she watched Giles near the edge of the room, closing the bookcase completely before turning to face her.

“How did you guarantee that?” She asked.

“Easy. I indulged his childish passions and limited his academic advancement.”

“Wait. Wait. Wait. You kept Oto dumb?”

“A naive boy cannot run a mob. And in the extra time I've gotten with him, and the rare moments I get to be around his father, I have been gathering much information.”

“What information?”

At this, Giles smiled, crossing before the fire. Slipping a rag from his coat, he began to wipe down a pair of seats before beckoning Hayami to sit.

“Come, Miss Kiku.” He beckoned her. “Sit. We have much to discuss about the upcoming Ball.”