AJ exited the carriage in front of a building that looked similar to that of a Japanese palace. The entire place appeared to have been built into the side of a grassy hill, with tall walls encircling the perimeter, and cherry trees blooming on either side. Unlike most businesses, this particular one was practically at the edge of Durai City, close enough to the town to be within easy travel distance, but far enough away to be considered something of a resort. ‘I remember when I had to get the specialized permits for this place,’ he thought silently, ‘and how many governmental hoops I had to jump through while the spa was being built.’
Looking back at his driver, AJ gave the older male a bow of his head. “Thank you, Tai.” he remarked out of respect.
“You are welcome, sir.” Tai said with a smile, “Will you be needing me before this afternoon?”
Thinking about that for a moment, AJ shook his head. “No. I should be fine until about five. Feel free to take that time off.”
“Very good, sir.” Tai remarked as AJ headed for his business.
Walking through the swinging gate attached to a waist high, bamboo fence separating Onsen Spa from the street, AJ heard the hinges squeak a little, causing him to look back. ‘Hmm, going to have to get some oil on that hinge.’ he thought to himself as he turned his eyes to look at the building itself.
A pure white stone path stood, flanked by six inches of gravel between the stones and the green grass leading up to the spa. Its white facade was bordered by dark red cherry wood, while wide double doors, specifically the sliding bamboo/paper versions popular with Asian countries, led into the spa itself. The dark tiled, sloped roof overhung the front and sides, offering shelter when it rained. On either side of the doors stood a pair of bushes, cut into multi-tiered bonsai, adding to the overall look of the grounds. Japanese maple trees stood to either side of the building, offering quite a bit of shade.
Memories flooded back to AJ, finding the debris of destroyed homes, then the discovery of a pair of otters within the wreckage. Years later another storm, and then the order from his father to leave. He didn’t want to go, but he did along with Crystal and the otters, they arrived here. Feelings of pain and anguish accompanied those images, yet he smiled serenely. The knowledge that they had survived, and even thrived in an area that they knew nothing about, save for what few minor tales had been told to him by relatives decades previously. ‘A year and a half of work,’ he thought, ‘and she was worth every coin I put into her.’
Entering the spa, he looked around the interior, enjoying the contrast between the dark cherry wood beams, the slightly brighter bamboo wood floor, and the eggshell white walls. AJ turned his attention to the reception desk, and the matronly vixen sitting behind the chest high furnishing, typing on the computer. “Good morning Ashley,” he said walking up, causing the blond to look up with a happy smile.
“Good morning, AJ.” Ashley greeted cordially.
“How does our schedule look today?” he asked walking behind the counter, to look over her shoulder, causing the woman to look up for a brief moment.
“Decent. I was updating our client list for today after we received a few last minute calls this morning.” she answered.
“Good. It will be nice to have more clientele.” he remarked as he leaned back up, and turned for the door behind her. Ashley stood, following AJ as he opened the door, and entered the back room. Inside this spacious room hung the robes for client’s use, as well as a number of towels, and a half dozen washer/dryer units. This was also the entrance to the main office. Entering the open doorway to a small twenty by twenty foot room with an antique wooden desk, file cabinets, a phone sat situated beside the desk on another filing cabinet, and pictures on the walls of Formosa. Sitting down at his desk, the dragon looked up at the vixen receptionist, “Is there anything that needs my attention today?” he asked as he got comfortable in his high backed leather chair.
“We need essential oils; specifically rose, clary sage, and peppermint for the massage oils and lotions, plus we’ve had a few people complaining about the towels being too scratchy, so I sent Pauline out to find a softer brand. She came back only a few minutes before you arrived with a couple of samples.” Ashley answered, “I have them right here for you to check. Also we’re starting to run low on soap in the bathhouse.”
Looking at his antique wooden desk complete with a felt blotter in front of him, and five drawers in the front, AJ reached up, pressing a secret set of buttons under the lip, and lifted to expose a 27” computer monitor. A touchscreen keyboard and ergonomic mouse rested on top of a shelf that slid out to lightly touch the edge of his chair’s arms. Reaching out to the sides, he then lifted up the flaps over the top drawers, to reveal a pair of black speakers. Twisting the knob for sound, he watched as the red light came on, before reaching down and unlocking the bottom drawer. Seconds later, he dropped the flap down, and slid it under to reveal the black micro-tower. Depressing the power button on both the tower and the monitor, he watched as both came to life, the touchscreen keyboard illuminating each key at the same time. After clicking on a couple of icons, mostly the order forms for what the spa would need, and the spreadsheet for updating their inventory, he looked back at Ashley. “How much to we have left?” he asked.
“Enough to last about a week.” Ashley answered stoically.
“Got it.” AJ nodded in acknowledgment. “Anything else?”
“A couple of the masseuses need off sometime next week.” she added.
“You think you can get the times covered?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” she answered, “but that may not matter with my next piece of news.”
“Oh? What’s that?” AJ asked.
“We also have a couple of people seeking employment.”
“I’ll look at their applications right after I’ve gotten done with the inventory.” AJ remarked before thinking about something. “Ashley, have you ever heard of someone named Thomas?”
“First or last name?” she asked.
“Last. Possibly a mink.”
“Mink… mink…” she thought aloud as she closed her eyes, “I have heard of a number of Thomas’s but I don’t know of any minks named Thomas.” She then looked at him, “May I ask why you’re searching for that particular name?”
“One of my children have apparently made friends with a young mink named Martin Thomas, but I know almost nothing about the boy. I just wanted to know more about his family.”
“Hmm,” she thought aloud, “I can find out about the young man if you like.”
“Please.” AJ commented as she turned to leave, she then stopped,
“Wait! I just remembered reading about someone with the last name Thomas.” she remarked.
AJ looked up at her, cocking his head to the side. “Oh?” he asked.
“Yes. The owner of the security firm, SynTech.”
“SynTech. Why does that name sound so familiar?” AJ asked.
“Probably because they’re the ones that guard our information and the spa from hackers and thieves.” Ashley commented, “I believe the owner is a woman named Andais Thomas.”
“Hmm, the name Thomas is a very common name…”
“I only remembered it because of a Forbes article from a magazine out in the lobby area.”
“Could you bring it in for me to read?” he asked.
“Right away.” Ashley answered before heading back out to the front. Going around the receptionist desk, she started sorting through the magazines on the small coffee table, but didn’t find it in the current selection. ‘Now where the hell is it?’ she thought silently, ‘Could someone have taken it?’
Heading back to the desk, she finally found what she was looking for in a drawer only a few minutes later. “Someone must’ve been reading it while on break.” she thought aloud as she looked at the cover.
On the cover sat a matronly woman, who obviously had kept her figure, sitting on a dark leather couch. Andais wore a black skirt that stopped only a few inches above the knee, a pair of black pumps on her feet, while a soft blue business jacket partly covered over her white shirt, the top left unbuttoned to expose her pure white furred upper chest area, while a string of pearls sat around her neck. Her long, blond hair was pinned up into a bun behind her head, with loose strands hanging down either side of her face. ‘Some women have it all.’ she thought silently with a scowl noting the woman’s full bosom, and slender waist.
Walking back into the office, she set the magazine in one of the alcoves of the desk. “Thank you, Ashley. I’ve already ordered the oils, and I believe that we should go with this brand of towel.”
“Okay. I’ve brought back the magazine for your perusal.” she commented, taking the washcloth from the dragon, “Do you want me to tell Pauline to pick up some towels where she found this one?”
“Yes. Please. Just make sure she gets on hundred gross. I don’t want to be without towels for the customers.”
“Understood. I’ll let her dip into the petty cash…”
“No. Just give her the business credit card, and let her know that if she needs to pick up anything else for the spa, to call you ahead of time.” AJ commented as he finished what he was typing on the computer.
“That’s a lot of trust to be putting on her.”
“She’s earned it. Besides, I always keep an eye on every transaction, so I’ll know if something is wrong.” he then gave Ashley a small smile, “I’m optimistic, not stupid.”
Ashley nodded as she left the office, letting AJ work. Turning to his computer, he printed out the list of items he ordered, as well as the inventory list, before he got up and walked out of the office. Heading through the spa he double-checked what should be ordered, while greeting his various employees, and checking up on the spa itself.
By the time AJ returned to his office, it was already after ten in the morning. Sitting down behind his desk, he gave a soft sigh as he relaxed, looking over what else he had to do, when his eyes settled on the magazine. Picking it up, he checked the table of contents, and noted the page number. Flipping to the center of the magazine, he actually had to flip back a couple of pages to the beginning of the interview.
Just before the interview even started, there was a page and a half spread of a rather beguiling woman, her hands together, fingers interlaced. On her left hand, he noted a silver (or possibly white gold) ring with a trio of stones, two heart shaped aquamarines flanking a diamond, indicating that she was married. The crystalline blue eyes were sharp, yet friendly, and her figure was much fuller than what he liked, but he found the woman to be quite lovely. The smile on her lips seemed honest and genuine, while her manner of dress could be considered “conservative” at the very least. ‘Could you really be Martin’s mother?’ he thought silently.
From the moment he started reading, AJ discovered that this woman was something special. At the beginning, she confirmed that she was still married, quite happily, to an officer in the Navy. The interviewer asked about her family briefly, which she indicated that she had… six daughters… and one son, all natural births. That in itself was unusual, and caused AJ to look back at the woman’s figure once more. ‘Apparently she wasn’t just laying around eating pickles and ice cream all day.’ he thought to himself.
When they talked about her business, she speaks rather candidly about working her way up from being a secretary to a senior manager by the time she turned 40. Upon talking about how she became the owner, and CEO of SynTech, he actually imagined her laughing as she tells the interviewer of how the previous CEO had stolen money to embezzle from the company, and of her appointment to that particular branch with the mission of turning the place back into a money making business. Andais then mentioned how her appointment to that branch had been a plot to see her fail so that the company could fire her without being charged with sexual discrimination.
Narrowing his eyes, AJ felt his stomach tightening. He despised people who deigned to treat others like garbage, his own first-hand knowledge of that coming to a head while he tried to adopt Chani. The memory was still a sore spot, but he continued to read, pushing that thought from his mind for the time being. He then read about how the mink had used her own money, her life savings, and even a couple of loans to keep the business running.
After a year, she was contacted by their parent company, with them demanding a report. She attempted to tell them about the changes she enacted, but they seemed uninterested, so she neglected to tell them about the found slush fund she had found. It was then that they informed Andais of her impending termination for failing to make the business a success. She accepted it without argument, but then made a counter proposal.
She offered to buy the building, the equipment inside, and the parking lot adjacent. At first the owners laughed while she sat there, one of them throwing out an astronomical price of $15.9 billion for the entire place. When she made a counter offer of $1.5 million, they stopped laughing, deciding that she was serious. Over the course of the next six months, she talked them down to $1.5 billion, all while funneling money into the slush fund from her changes in the company, while still paying the employees that worked there. Andais had an attorney friend draw up the contract, making sure that the parent company couldn’t renege on any part, and that the building would officially belong to her for the collected price of $1.5 billion, which was the exact price of the slush fund at that moment.
In essence, she paid for the building with the company’s own money.
The dragon gave a little chuckle at that, as he read about how the contract didn’t specify where the funds came from. Since the matronly mink had spent her entire life savings just to keep the business going, Andais had already paid her dues on the building, equipment, and incidentals. Reaching up, he rubbed his chin as he closed the magazine. “Inventive, determined, and obviously a person who cares for her people. Perhaps I should give this woman a call.” AJ thought aloud. Looking around, he saw that there was nothing else to do until that afternoon, and his first scheduled interview, so he turned toward the cabinet on his left, and retrieved the phone handset.
Back at SynTech, Andais had just dropped the contract onto her desk, sighing wearily. This was not the time to lack brain cells apparently. Leaning her head back, she closed her eyes, a small pounding starting behind her eyes. ‘Great. Now I have a headache.’ she grumbled before the phone rang. Reaching out, she picked up the receiver, while rubbing her forehead. “SynTech Distribution, this is Andais Thomas, how may I help you?” she asked.
“I’m sorry to bother you, Mrs. Thomas,” AJ commented calmly “but I hope I’m not interrupting anything.” For a few seconds he just sat there, thinking ‘Strange. I would’ve thought a woman like her might have a secretary at the very least.’
“Oh, nothing that can’t wait until later.” she answered. “Um, might I ask who’s calling?”
“My apologies. I’m AJ Durai, owner and operator of Onsen Spa.”
‘Durai?! As in the owner of Durai City?!’ she thought to herself, sitting bolt upright. “Oh? Yes, Mr. Durai. How can I help you today?” she asked while internally thinking ‘AJ Durai! What did I do?! Is he upset about my business?! He’s… Can I have done something wrong with his business? Oh God! How screwed am I?!’
“Please, just call me AJ.” he said with a smile. The sound causing her to relax considerably.
She nodded as she brought up information about Onsen Spa, “I will, but only if you call me Andais, AJ.”
“No problem there.”
Leaning back, she tried to let her heartbeat slow to something less than hummingbird speed. “I must admit that you have caught me by surprise since I haven’t heard of anything going wrong with Onsen Spa that would warrant a phone call from the owner.”
“Indeed.” AJ commented, “That’s why this is not a business call.”
“Oh?” she blinked stunned for a few seconds. “Then to what do I owe the pleasure of this quite unexpected conversation?” she asked.
AJ gave a small smile as he spoke. “I only wished to meet the mother who raised such a wonderful young man like Martin.”
Blinking at the mention of her son, Andais cocked her head to the side. “My son? How do you know him?”
“We met yesterday at the police station, when he helped my daughter, Chani, against a soon to be convicted rapist, and murderer.” AJ admitted, happy that his guess was confirmed.
Andais flopped back, her hand going to her forehead while her leather chair shifted under her. ‘His daughter?! Chani! That… that cute little girl is…’ she thought silently, stunned into silence as AJ recounted all that transpired while they were at the police station.
“If it hadn’t been for your son, I doubt that the outcome would have been nearly as good for any of us, and I wanted to meet the parents of such a noble, and kind hearted young man.” he finished, causing tears to seep out of her eyes.
“You… You’re too kind.” she said softly, “I have to admit that this is a shock. My son told me only that he helped a young lady last night, but he never told me her name, or that he met you yesterday.”
“Perhaps it just slipped his mind?” AJ offered as an excuse.
Nodding, she smiled, “Perhaps. Although I did manage to meet your daughter this morning when I dropped my son off at school.” There was silence on the other end of the line as she continued, “I found the young woman to be one of the most respectful, and lovely young ladies I have ever had the pleasure to speak with.”
“Thank you for your kind words, I only wish I could take credit for most of what Chani has learned.”
“Yes.” she said softly, “I… please don’t be offended, but I wanted to know more about the young girl, and… well…”
AJ nodded, “I fully understand. Upon meeting Martin, I wished to know more about his family as well, so do not feel like you have to explain yourself, Andais.”
“Explain? No, but I feel I must apologize. When I read about what Chani went through… at such a young age… I… I felt horrible. Nobody should go through what she has, especially considering her age at the time.” she could feel tears threatening to spill out of her eyes again, “I found out that she…”
“Lost her parents?” AJ asked.
“Yes.”
“It is the same for all three of my children. Her younger brother, Lee, and sister, Jenny, hail from Formosa where I and my mate are from,” he said softly, “we came here to rebuild our lives after a disaster on the island swept their parents out to sea.”
“That’s horrible.” Andais whispered, mortified.
“With everything that has happened to our family, I’m just happy that Chani could meet such a wonderful young man like Martin.”
“I thank you for that compliment, AJ. My husband and I have tried to raise him as a young man who makes good choices, but we’ve been away from my spouse for the past five years, and I must admit that he’s been rather surly until last night.” she thought aloud, smiling in spite of their subject.
“Perhaps it’s because of my daughter, Chani?” AJ suggested, “She does tend to bring out the best in people.”
“Then she is an exceptional young lady indeed.” Andais commented.
AJ smiled at the compliment, he would have to tell Chani about it when he saw her again. “Back on Formosa… it was customary for business associates to dine together when finishing a contract…”
“Unfortunately, we already have a valid contract,” Andais commented, “so how about I just invite you and your family over to my house tonight for dinner so that our two families can meet fully?”
“Alas, I cannot tonight. Perhaps tomorrow?” he asked.
Opening her address book, she looked at the calendar. “Tomorrow would be good, but Friday would be even better.” she answered.
“Friday it is.”
“Then I will see you on Friday, AJ.” she said as she was closing out the call.
“Perhaps we can see each other sooner than that?” he suggested.
For a moment she blinked, her heart leaping up into her throat. “Um… what do you mean?”
“As you no doubt know, I own a spa.” he answered, “I’m offering you a complimentary treatment.”
Sitting there stunned, Andais blinked. “I… I couldn’t do that…”
“It would be no problem for us to…”
Closing her eyes, she shook her head. “Please, let me finish.” she said stopping him, “I couldn’t do that to you, just because your daughter and my son are friends, so if I come down to the spa, I will pay just like every other customer.”
Nodding, AJ smiled, “Then I look forward to your patronage.”
“That makes two of us.”
Bidding each other goodbye, Andais hung up the phone as she looked up at the ceiling, not sure if she wanted to scream, cry, laugh, or dance around. Reaching out, she picked up the leather folder, and started reading the contract once more. ‘Who knew that scaring someone half to death was better than coffee?’ she thought silently.
AJ hung up the phone and leaned back in his chair. Thinking for a couple of minutes before picking it up again. Dialing a number he knew by heart with a grin on his face, he heard the phone ring a couple of times before it was picked up.
“Hello?” came a female voice from the other end.
“Crys, I’ve got a little surprise for you.” AJ said, greeting his mate.
“Oh? What’s that?” Crystal asked in return.
“Do you remember SynTech?” AJ queried.
“Aren’t they the company that does internet and physical security?” his mate asked in return.
“Yes.” AJ answered. “I just got off the phone with the owner, Andais Thomas.”
“So?” Crystal asked, “What’s the big deal to call me an old nickname?”
“She is the mother to Martin.” AJ remarked, “The young man that helped Chani out yesterday.”
“Oh. I see.” Crystal said, finally understanding. “But that still doesn’t explain anything.”
“We’re going to have dinner with her and her family on Friday.” AJ explained.
“Ah, and that made you giddy enough to use my old nickname?” she teased.
AJ chuckled and lightly blushed, happy that nobody could see him, “Considering what I read in this magazine article about what she went through,” AJ commented, “I think she’d make a wonderful security or financial advisor back home.”
“Ahhh, okay.” Crystal commented. “Should I tell the kids when they get home tonight?”
AJ thought for a second, “No.” he answered, “Let it be a surprise.”
“Any particular reason?” she asked.
“No.” he remarked. “Just a nice surprise at the end of the week.”
“Alright.” Crystal commented. “Oh, one more thing.”
“Yes?” AJ asked
“Chani is going to a bookstore with Martin after school.” Crystal explained. “They’re going to be working on their report for World History class.”
“Yes, she told me that this morning before hopping on her bike.”
“Okay, I just wanted to make sure you knew.” Crystal nodded.
“Thank you, beautiful.” he remarked, “I’ll see you tonight, and I’ll let Tai know to pick us up on Friday.”
“I love you.” said Crystal with a slight blush on her cheeks.
“Love you too, Crys.” AJ said, returning the affection. Hanging up the phone, he picked up the applications, and resumes from the applicants. Leaning back in his chair, he read through each one, smiling to himself.
