V. I Chapter 9: Laksa

Jaeyline tapped her fingers on the desk, bored. Because Ciel had left early and in such a hurry, she gave almost everyone except the COOs the day off, designating some of them to look for Ciel. Even if she wouldn't let her face show it, she was very worried.

Jaeyline sighed at the empty office, but then her eyes caught on something sitting in the little wall cubby she called her "mailbox". She stood, walking over to it, curious.

"Oh! My dear, sweet Jaeyline!!!" Moray Cordelia cried as he flung open the doors. "How is my precious daughter?" He looked around. "Jay?"

But Jaeyline wasn't listening, her hands wrapped tightly around something small and round. Jaeyline's eyes started to tear up. She was horrible. The scum of the Earth.

"Jay?"

She jumped in surprise, turning to see her father standing there. "Dad! What a surprise. What made you come here?" she asked.

"Nothing in particular, but I see that CEO of yours is gone."

Jaeyline's hand clenched. "Yes."

"Is he taking good care of you?"

"Yes."

"Is he a good man? Strong and handsome and young?"

"Yes."

"Is he a hard worker."

"The best ever," Jaeyline whispered, and then she burst into tears.

"A- Jay... please calm down... I don't know how to..." begged Moray.

"Who dares to make my little sister cry! They must be seeking death!" a snappish voice drawled. Ina Cordelia walked in, tall and proud, wearing heels so tall it would make girls cry just looking at them.

Jaeyline laughed weakly. "No, it's not that. I'm crying because I'm an idiot."

"Why?"

"Don't laugh at me," Jaeyline pouted.

"Can't promise anything, Jay," Orion Cordelia said, walking in.

Jaeyline sighed. Her baby brother was such a pain. "I'm an idiot because I could tell when the person I care for most was in pain. I couldn't tell even when he was so close for so long. But somehow he's always able to read me. He's done nothing but help me, but I haven't even thanked him properly."

"Ooh, big sis has a boy~friend~!" Orion giggled, making smooching noises.

"No. Just someone I like who probably doesn't like me back," Jaeyline said.

"Who is it? And what did he do that makes him so special?"

"He takes care of me every day in the office. Here," Jaeyline said, walking to her desk and taking her sizable collection of Ciel's writings.

"Sis... that's creepy even for you," Orion said, wincing. "And I never thought I's say that after what happened in middle school."

Jaeyline just glared at him before rummaging through them. She smiled gently at them. "The day he figured out my favorite color, all of the sticky notes in the building were changed to the same color I love. The same color as his eyes."

"How are you doing... mentally? In 'that' category?" Ina asked.

Jaeyline shrugged. "Fine, I guess. I haven't ripped anyone apart yet, so yeah. I also haven't been following him around. I just like being next to him."

"Who is he?"

"My Assistant and CEO. Ciel."

"That's pretty," Ina said.

"He's very pretty," agreed Jaeyline before she could stop herself. "Ciel. And his last name is so pretty. Michaelis."

"Wait-- the Michaelises?" Jaeyline's family asked at the same time.

"W-what do you mean?" Jaeyline asked, confused.

"There's a name coated in shadow and fear spread from Japan to Great Britain. Acasia Michaelis, the head of the Yakuza Japanese Mafia," Ina said.

"And there's a rumor she married the boss of England's Mafia," added Orion.

"And there's a rumor that they had a son that would be greater than they were," finished Moray. "I can't believe I overlooked that in the search."

"He hasn't seen his mother in five years," Jaeyline argued. "Even if he was the son of the Mafia, he hasn't tried to kill me yet, and he's actually protected me more times than I can count."

"That doesn't mean anything. The Michaelis family is known for their lies and deception."

"I trust him," Jaeyline said stubbornly. "He's my friend and hopefully more than that." She snapped and showed them the thing she had clenched in her hand.

"Is that..."

"It can't be..."

"How in the..."

It was a gold ring with a heart-shaped emerald held in the band. The emerald was slightly chipped on one corner, but... that ring had been lost in the accident Jaeyline's mother died in. She didn't know he'd gone to the site, dug around until he found the beaten gold and shattered emerald. She didn't know he'd been spending the better part of a two years fixing it until it was almost new.

"He fixed Mom's ring," Ina muttered, falling to the carpeted floors.

"Orina..." murmured Moray.

Jaeyline clutched the fragile ring in her hands. "I've been so absorbed with work and just watching him I've completely neglected trying to see what was bothering him of late."

"Well Fix it. Ask him out. This kind of man... even if he is a Michaelis, would be good for you," Orion said, plopping down in the President's chair.

"I agree. He sounds precious. Keep him close if you don't wish to lose him to another," instructed Ina.

"Dad?" Jaeyline asked.

"I don't approve of the Michaelis family. But this boy really does care about you. Please, tell him how grateful we are for what he has done for you and for us."

Jaeyline teared up again. "Thanks, guys. I'll bring him over for a visit as soon as I can. Wish me luck." She slipped the ring on her fight hand's ring finger. She grabbed the pile of blue notes before heading out of the office.

"Where are you going?" Orion called.

"To look for him!" Jaeyline cried, already out of Ciel's office outside of her own. She hugged the blue papers to her chest as she ran through the maze of desks. She knew all of his favorite spots, and the place he was most likely to be was...!

"Have we seen him today? No, I thought he was working," Jerry said.

"Oh, really?" Jaeyline breathed, disappointed. But then she perked up a bit. That means he wasn't flirting with any of these strong girls. "Do you know where I might find him?"

"I might."

Jaeyline turned and nodded at Enda. "It's good to see you again," she said coolly. She knew this person was a man, but she also knew this person was a lot closer to Ciel than she would like. Her finger twitched like they would like nothing more than to wrap around his girly throat and squeeze, but she just clenched her fist.

"I don't know his exact location, but he should be stopping by here before the day ends."

"Do you have a time stamp?"

"Between four and six."

Jaeyline just nodded, making sure none of the notes had dropped before moving back to the door. She was forced to stop as the thin one, Denis, intercepted her path. "What is it?" she asked, annoyed. How dare he hinder her path.

"I just wanted to know why you're looking for him. Why are you looking for Ciel?" he asked calmly, his face expertly blank.

"He ran out of the office without even notifying me and reports from my employees said that he'd thrown up in the bathroom and was jerky and snappish. That's worrying behavior for someone who was generous just a few minutes earlier."

Denis glanced past Jaeyline before nodding and stepping aside. He handed her a piece of blue-grey paper. "Ciel gave this to us in case you ever need him."

Jaeyline took the slip of paper, finding an address in Ciel's elegant cursive script. She nodded her thanks before darting through the doors.

"Was that a good idea?" Jerry asked.

"I'm not entirely sure," replied Denis.

Enda walked up to them. "Of course it wasn't. You know her history. What if she--"

"Enough, Enda," Denis said. "Even with her history, I can tell she genuinely cares about him. But in what way... I don't know quite yet. She's been restraining herself when she's around him, so I believe she wouldn't hurt him."

Enda said, "I still don't think it's a good idea! What if she does hurt him! I should go bring her back..."

"Enda, stop," Jerry said, dead serious. "There's a chance she could hurt him, but who are we to make the choice for him? What if she's the one to finally bring him out of his past? That would mean taking her out of his life would the the same as killing everything in his life."

Enda wrung his hands. "Fine. I just..."

"We know," Denis and Jerry said.

"I know. All I want for that poor boy is a happy and peaceful life unhindered by his mother's poisonous touch," Jerry said, looking after where Jaeyline had run off.

.

Jaeyline gaped as she looked at the three-story house. She knew Ciel wasn't someone who liked stuff, but apparently he liked big houses. She walked right up to the door, glancing at the note before stepping off the front step and moving to the windchime hanging up by the window. She reached for it, fingers closing around a key hidden in the chime. She hid a smile.

Jaeyline opened the front door silently, looking around curiously She explored, walking up to the second floor. Then she heard noises coming from the kitchen. Warily, she walked over, finding someone with black hair in the fridge. "Ciel...?" Jaeyline asked.

The figured whirled and looked at her with jade green eyes, and her resolve solidified. This man was not Ciel! "Who in the God--" He stood and ran at her. "Who are you!"

Jaeyline waited until he was within range before ducking down, using the man's own momentum to strengthen her punch as she socked him in the gut. She watched him writhing on the ground, coughing. "Who are you and what are you doing in his house!" she demanded, stomping his foot close to his face.

"I should ask the same about you! Are you some crazy bodyguard my brother hired to keep me out of his fridge?"

Jaeyline frowned. "You know Ciel?"

The man returned her puzzlement. "Of course I do. He's my big brother. Dad's side only. Who are you?"

"I'm his boss," Jaeyline replied. "President of LEO Corp. He's my CEO."

The two looked at each other and blinked.

.

"I can't believe that someone as lazy as Ciel could work under a hottie like you!"

Jaeyline smiled wryly. She didn't exactly like Ciel's brother, but he still had Ciel's hair and she could see the resemblance between them in the way they both had a serious line to their eyebrows and the way they played with their hair when they were thinking about something. "Wait-- Ciel is lazy?" she asked interested, resisting the urge to take out a notepad and pencil and jot things down as Laksa replied.

He said, "Oh, hell yeah. Like a cat sunbathing."

"He's never showed one once of laziness with me," Jaeyline replied. But then her mind flashed back, to the rare times she'd seen Ciel moody. Had that been because he didn't want to do the work?

"Wow. Lucky. How close are you two?" Laksa asked.

Jaeyline tilted her head. "Hasn't Ciel told you that he's been working for me for five years?"

Instead of any of the reactions Jaeyline was expecting, Laksa just tugged at his hair and sighed, "No, actually. You see, I've only met him once before. We're half-brothers, with the same dad, so I grew up in England while Ciel grew up in Japan. My dad let slip once that I had a brother and I grew curious, so I flew here to find him. The first time I saw my brother was in the mouth of an alley, getting beaten by his mother."

"That's horrible!" Jaeyline gasped.

Laksa nodded. "I kept my distance for a bit after that. But temptation finally grew too strong. I introduced myself, keeping it a secret that we were brothers. We were friends for a very, very short time. Two days later, I finally told him I was his brother and I knew his father."

"Did he start screaming?" guessed Jaeyline.

But Laksa shuddered. "I only wish that was what happened. He froze and tensed, eyes going wide and mad. Then he grabbed my shoulders until his nails bit into my skin and said in a crazed and terrified voice, 'Get out of here now. You're not safe here. Not from me, or my mother. Let nobody know you are my brother. Or you will suffer for it like I did.'"

"That's... intense."

"Yeah. I was so startled, I left that hour. I was terrified of what had gotten into him. But when I got back to Japan, my father confronted me on what I'd been up to. I told him I'd met my big brother. When I finally started noticing something was terribly, terribly wrong and I should have stayed by Nii-san's side was when my father grabbed me so hard he left bruises, though he'd never hurt me before, and said, 'You cannot go back, no matter what. That boy won't be around for you to see him anyway. Promise me, Laksa, that you won't ever go back into that demon's territory!' No matter how hard I tried, I never was able to see him again."

"How old were you guys when you met?"

"I was seven, and he was ten. My father left his mother when he was three, moved back to Japan and had me with his current wife. I only understood when I grew older that something had been very, very, very wrong for a child to hold that much terror and madness inside his eyes."

"Laksa..."

He smiled sadly. "I grew up nicely, as you can see, and I've seen him from a distance several times over the years, as he'd moved to London, and I have to admit he's turned out even better than I could have hoped, but I never had the courage to see his face again. Not after I left him with that monster. Leaving my precious big brother that day will be the choice I regret for the rest of my life."

Jaeyline was about to reply when the door downstairs banged open, causing them both to jump. But there was no sound of feet on the stairs, just a heavy thump before silence.

"Let me," Laksa said, dead serious, and Jaeyline matched that look with the one Ciel had every time he was about to save her life yet again. She sat very still, the way Ciel taught her, as she listened to Laksa walk down the stairs. Then she heard a curse. "Jaeyline! I need your help!"

Jaeyline was down the stairs before the words had stopped echoing in the big and silent house. Her hands flew over her mouth. "Oh my God! We have to get him upstairs!"

"Calm down, please," Laksa said, but his face was pale and he looked like he was about to be sick. He just slipped of the shoes and picked him up carefully. "Take the shoes up with us, and if you know how to cook anything at all, do it."

Jaeyline nodded and ran back upstairs, getting to work in the kitchen, working in a panicked frenzy. She looked up as Laksa ran up the steps, fear and sadness and hate threatening go overwhelm her as she watched Ciel's unconscious and bruised and cut form being rushed upstairs. She grit her teeth and the hand holding the knife clenched. Whoever had done this... after she was done, they would beg a demon to kill them.

Jaeyline tensed. Whoever this was... might even be too much for her to handle.

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Moray Edvard Cordelia - M - 49 years old

Likes: his cute children, his wife's favorite flower, retirement, men who will treat his daughters right.

Dislikes: men hitting on his daughters, working during retirement, doing laundry(because who has time for that, right?).

Strengths: scaring his daughters' boyfriends, camping, flying a jet, throwing dynamite, and bringing "overprotective" to a whole other level.

Weaknesses: staying out of his children's personal lives, tragic love stories/movies, being reminded of his wife.