“Well done,” the older man in the tall hat says, turning repeatedly in his hands the sliver-gilded object. Craftsmanship wise, he has no complaints. The object could easily pass for a sleek phone or perhaps a music player of some sort. He gives a surreptitious glance at the skinny boy in front of him. Dressed in a scruffy shirt and jeans, one wouldn’t even think twice of him. He looks like your average 16 year old, just the kind of kid you’d expect from the Other Side of the city. The turtle-shaped plastic pendant hanging around his neck seemed to be the only distinguishing piece of anything about the boy.
Well, well, he thinks to himself as he inspects the object in his hand, touching the glowing screen lovingly, looks can be deceiving, eh?
As if the said young boy in front of him knew what he was thinking, the other gives the older man a knowing smirk. “I trust that’s what you were looking for, Mr. Gillespie?” He points out a non-descript tiny, black button on the side of the device, “And here, you just push this and –“
Beeep!
The younger man beside Mr. Gillespie gives a start as his phone suddenly beeped. He flips it open and looks surprised. On the screen of his phone, he could clearly see a live video feed of the three of them inside the darkened café. Near the bottom of the screen, the exact coordinates of the place was written in tiny, glowing script. “So you could actually extend that device’s features to other phones --?”
“Yep,” the youngest boy replied coolly, “and you can change angles, too. Everything from the original device can be virtually transferred to anything else. Phones, headsets – the works,” he glances up at him, “Well, as long as it supports wi-fi or bluetooth, of course.”
He gives a faint smile at the youngest boy. “As much as I’d hate to admit it but…you’re truly a genius at this, Kazuya. This will be truly useful with our operations.”
“Spare the flattery, Rabbit,” the boy called Kazuya scoffs. “Words won’t keep me fed, y’know.” He smirks at them, hands held out. “It’s all about the money, gentlemen. Let’s keep this clean and professional. So if you please...?”
Mr. Gillespie breaks out into laughter, “Well said, Kazuya.” He turns to the other man, “Rabbit, the payment for the talented young lad?”
Tsk. Rabbit scowls at the younger boy. He slides a small, leather pouch across the table. “I trust this will be enough?”
Kazuya smirks at him, making a show of counting the gold coins inside the pouch. “Well, this will do –“ he looks up, staring directly at the older men in front of him. “- for now.” He shakes the small leather pouch, the coins making a soft plinking sound. “Mr. Gillespie, you should understand that my services aren’t exactly cheap.”
“Don’t think of yourself too highly, lad.” The eldest stands up, eyes glittering in the dark, “You might be good,” he lowers his head, closer to the boy, “but you’re not that good.” He stands up and signals to Rabbit. “Let’s go,” he says brusquely, turning away from the other and heading towards the exit.
From the window, Kazuya sees a young, handsome boy, no more than ten or eleven, dressed in a stiff, black suit. The boy opens the car door for the pair. As if sensing that someone was watching them, the young boy stares at the general direction of Kazuya from inside of the small café. He holds his gaze for a minute longer, before turning his back and getting inside the car himself.
Kazuya ‘s eyes flashed,“Oh, but Mr. Gillespie, you have no idea how good I really am.”
