Lonely Thieves

Act IV, Part III

Megumi's Side (April 13, 9:00 am)

Megumi stood in front of the veiled bed, mind racing. What name did the man in the hoodie just call her? Chisato? But that was her mother's name. She was supposed to be dead, but... could it be?

Megumi reached out to throw aside the veil, but was stopped by the sound of a voice echoing through her mind. Don't! Megumi flinched as she looked around for the source of the sound.

I'm speaking using a neural transplant that converts thoughts into soundwaves, the voice explained. My vocal cords, as well as much of my body, was destroyed long ago beyond repair. Much of my skin has been replaced with silicone grafts, but I'd rather you not see me right now.

Megumi clenched her fist. She felt an impatient desire to make clear the doubts growing in her heart, but she pushed it down and stepped back from the bed. From behind the veil, she could make out a silhouette nodding weakly.

"Can I at least ask you... if you are who I think you are?"

The silhouette seemed to quiver a bit, before nodding again. Yes, Megumi. I am your mother.

Megumi tried to speak, but the words caught in her throat. She always said that she wouldn't feel much emotion if she ever got to meet her parents, but now that it was happening, she was overwhelmed by the whole situation.

Chisato seemed to understand what Megumi was going through and spoke up to save her from having to respond. We can talk later. For now, shall we get down to business? I'm sure you want to know why you were brought here.

Daryl, who had been awkwardly silent this whole time, chose now to speak up. "If that's not too much trouble. We still don't even really know who you are or why you asked us here."

Megumi shook herself to clear her head. Daryl was right, annoyingly. This was an incredibly dangerous situation for them, and in the first place, she had no proof that the person behind the veil was actually her mother. They needed answers first and foremost. Sentimentality could come later.

Well, I suppose we should start with the reason I called you here. You might be thinking about it, but I should let you know this first: I'm not the client that asked you to steal the necklace.

"You're not?" Megumi had thought that was a fair possibility.

No. There was a plan for us to steal the necklace, but I wasn't planning on involving you.

"Too late for that now," Megumi grumbled.

I suppose so. That was why I ultimately decided to call you here, after all.

"Let me guess. You want the necklace, am I right?"

I do. Do you know the true significance of those necklaces?

Megumi nodded. They were supposedly the key to exposing Tom Hayasaka's massacre of the Matsuoka family. Supposedly they contained the true will of Gen Hayasaka, which was necessary for Tom Hayasaka to maintain his control of the Zaibatsu. Megumi still wasn't exactly sure how that was supposed to expose his crimes. After all, scandal was common in the Three Great Families. Media suppression could easily put all this under the rug.

Then you understand how important they are.

"Are you going to use them to take revenge on the Hayasakas?"

Chisato seemed to turn away despite being hidden behind a veil. Are you disappointed? That all this trouble was started because of a personal vendetta?

"Not at all," Megumi replied. "The things that Tom Hayasaka has done... are inhuman."

Then, can I ask you to leave the necklace with me? Chisato asked. I won't ask more of you than that. After all, you were never supposed to be involved... Once we're done here, you can go back to your normal lives.

Megumi stood silent, frozen by indecision. Going back to her normal life and freeing herself of the necklace that had brought her so much trouble was too good to be true, and yet... something about it felt wrong. As if she was leaving things unfinished.

Daryl, for his part, was rather unhelpful. She could hear him speaking to Chisato as she tried to think about the best course of action. "Well, I don't mean to sound like a money-grubber, but... I did get involved in all this because I needed to pay back my debts. Of course, I won't insist on still trying to turn in the necklace or ask for a sum like ten billion redals, but if it's at all possible to have some form of payment..."

A soft giggle echoed through the inside of Megumi's mind. Daryl, was it? Trevor looked into you. You've gotten yourself into quite the pickle, haven't you?

"Pickle is a bit of an understatement, but... that's basically the case here. I'm not asking for a lot, but considering this penthouse and everything, you've got to have a little room in your heart for charity, right?"

"Your shamelessness is truly record-breaking," Megumi grumbled spitefully.

"Can it!" Daryl shot back. "I told you, it's life or death for me!"

Chisato giggled again. Megumi, you've made quite an interesting friend.

"He's not my friend," Megumi grumbled.

Daryl, here's what I can do for you. Your friend Larry – the one who took out the loan – he's outside of Twilight city limits and switched his ID, but he forgot to disable the tracking on his smartphone. I can direct the Innocenti to him at any time so they can bring him back to Twilight to pay back his debts. Of course, I'll also remove your name from the loan documents in order to free you of your co-signer status.

"You can do that? No, will they even accept that?"

If you threaten them with a lawsuit, they'll probably drop the pressure, especially if they already have the original debtor. Don't worry, I'll take care of you. That should be sufficient reward, should it not?

A huge expression of relief came across Daryl's face. "Thank you so much! If you need anything from me, don't hesitate to ask, ma'am!"

Megumi sighed. In an instant, Chisato was able to make Daryl completely indebted to her. She was certainly quite the powerful person if she could do that much, though. Still, she found it hard to just give up the necklace. Was that what she came so far for? To just drop it off and go? Moreover, she still had no proof that this woman was her mother. This could all be an elaborate trap by Hayasaka, after all.

Was that the reason why she was hesitating, though? No, it couldn't be. Somehow, she could tell. This was her mother. There was no scientific or logical explanation for her feeling, but she just knew. And because she knew, there was no way she could just leave it at that.

"Once you get this necklace, you're going to take the fight to Hayasaka, right?"

Not right away, Chisato remarked. We still need the ruby necklace safeguarded by the Innocenti.
"I see. I'll give you the necklace. But on one condition."

A condition? Chisato seemed surprised. That's fine. What do you desire?

"Let me help you," Megumi replied. "I want to be a part of your revenge."