Broken Storm Part One (2 page)

‘K
eiko, how was work last night?’ Jenny padded into
the kitchen, yawning as she spread her arms wide. She was wearing a large white
shirt. It was not hers; it belonged to the guy on the coach.

Keiko spooned her cereal into her mouth, pulling
the paper towards her.

She was trying to ignore Jenny. It wouldn’t work.

Jenny walked up and flopped into the chair opposite
Keiko, she rested her slender legs on the table, her calves defined with long
lines as she bounced her toes up and down. ‘Complete disaster then?’

Keiko winced.

‘You didn’t get fired, right?’

She shook her head. ‘It wasn’t fun though.’

Jenny gave her a commiserating smile. ‘Sounds like
you need a distraction.’ She yanked her legs from the table as she leaned
forward, her shirt bunching up over her arms. ‘James and I are going to this
mucho exclusive party tonight, why don’t you come?’

Keiko frowned, placing her spoon down neatly. ‘If
it is mucho exclusive, how am I going to get in?’

Jenny fobbed a hand at her. ‘James knows the guys
working the door. Said he could get me and a friend in easy. And considering
you did fill in for me last night, I owe you.’

Keiko went back to eating her cereal.

Jenny leaned forward and grabbed the bowl from her,
little trails of milk spilling over the cheap plywood of the table.

‘Hey,’ Keiko protested.

‘I know you hate parties. But why don’t you give
this one a go?’ Jenny softened her tone. ‘Come on, Keiko, it’ll be a total
hoot. Can you imagine rubbing shoulders with the city’s high and mighty? It
could give you tons of ideas for Journalism class. What do you say?’

Keiko wanted to say that she hated parties, and
that she would leave it at that.

But maybe she did need a distraction.

Maybe she also needed to get out there. She just
went to class and worked. That was the sum total of her life. No boyfriend, no
ambition, nothing.

Maybe Jenny could see Keiko’s interest, however
small, and she latched onto it.

‘You can wear that knew bra,’ she winked. ‘I’ve got
just the skirt and heels. You’ll look great. Come on. Plus, when else are you
going to get to try French Champagne and Italian truffles? You always love to
cook, and you’re always going on about flavors. But let’s face it, unless you
land a rich boyfriend, you’ll be shopping for cans of soup for the rest of your
life. I hear they’ve got this cordon bleu chef, fresh from Paris. Come on.’

Keiko sunk her teeth into her lip and she stared
over at her roommate. Jenny had a very encouraging smile on her face, and the
more Keiko looked at it the wider it became.

‘Fine,’ Keiko managed.

‘Brilliant,’ Jenny tugged her bare legs off the
table and walked off into the other room without a word, leaving Keiko to think
over what she had just done.

It would, no doubt, be a big fat mistake. Keiko and
parties did not mix. It was a recipe for cruel and total embarrassment, and
considering what had happened last night, Keiko really didn’t need any more of
that.

T
his was going to be a mistake, Keiko was sure of
it. But she couldn’t back out now. Because not only was she wearing her new
lacy knickers, but Jenny had an arm clutched firmly around Keiko’s elbow and
she was pulling her towards the front doors.

James was by their side, and he nodded at the two
powerful-looking bouncers, who grinned back and chatted briefly about the
latest football results.

‘This is going to be brilliant,’ Jenny said in an
excited whisper, locking her arm even tighter around Keiko’s elbow.

It was going to be something, but Keiko really
doubted it would be brilliant. Embarrassing, most definitely, a waste of time,
probably, and no doubt something Keiko would ultimately regret.

Jenny tugged her all the way into the party, not
letting go of her once. ‘All the city’s elite are going to be here.’

Which meant that there was going to be a fantastic
audience for Keiko to stuff up in front of.

Despite how awkward she felt, at least there was
one thing she could enjoy. The building was a large one, and it had a great bank
of windows that looked out onto the street. It was opposite the park, and Alice
could see the clean and neat row of trees that lined up along the outer wall.
Right now they were buffeting around in the wind. It was picking up stronger
and stronger, and she could hear it roaring around outside. As she watched the
leaves in the tops of the trees pulling around in the gale, it calmed her.

The wind always did that. As it rushed on by it
almost felt like it took all of her worries and hangups with it.

Jenny did not hesitate at getting herself and James
some champagne, and she even grabbed a red wine for Keiko, despite the fact she
hardly drank.

All Keiko wanted to do was find a corner,
preferably close to those incredible windows, and let herself be taken away by
the view of the wind rushing through the city street outside.

She did not get her wish. Jenny, with James at her
side, proceeded to chat up every single guest that crossed their path.

For someone as intensely shy as Keiko, it was
excruciating, and if it hadn’t been for the wind, no doubt she would have
mumbled her apologies and run-off to the bathroom to hide.

For the most of it, Keiko kept quiet though, sipping
occasionally at her wine and grabbing at the fancy canapés whenever they wafted
past.

And she did enjoy them. Jenny had been right about
that. Keiko loved her food. Flavours, quality ingredients, just exactly the
kinds of things she couldn’t afford. In fact, it was when she walked off to get
a truffle-oil-infused goat-cheese soufflé that she came back to see Jenny and
James hanging around a new guest.

A man. In an incredible suit, a suit that matched
him perfectly.

Because he was handsome. The kind of handsome you
didn’t get in the real world. A powerful jaw, sharp, incredible eyes, and
cheekbones to die for. He was tall and broad, though his muscles were in proportion,
making him look strong and capable, but nowhere near like a steroid-stuffed
bodybuilder.

He barely acknowledged her as she walked over to
them, glancing her way, maybe offering an affable smile, but then getting back
to standing there, one hand clutching his wine, the other stuffed in his pocket.
He looked bored, thoroughly bored.

Keiko found herself scratching at her arms
distractedly, playing with the long straps of her purse, making sure she didn’t
spend too much time staring at the guy.

‘Keiko, introduce yourself, don’t just stand there,
socialize,’ Jenny said, her words slurring together slightly. She had already
consumed several champagnes, after all. And even though the girl could handle
her alcohol, there was a limit.

‘I,’ Keiko began. But then she stopped. The guy
really didn’t look like he cared.

‘Come on, say something interesting about
yourself,’ Jenny tried.

Keiko’s cheeks naturally became redder. Her hand
clutched a little tighter around her purse straps too. She looked down at her
feet, then slowly up at the guy beside her.

Though he flicked his gaze her way, that was it.

He really looked like he preferred to be anywhere
but here. It was a sentiment she could understand.

‘Come on, Keiko,’ Jenny tried again.

Knowing Jenny, she was just going to keep on
pushing and pushing.

‘There’s nothing interesting about me,’ Keiko
managed in a small voice.

‘Hold on, there is something interesting about you,
isn’t there? Didn’t you tell me you died or something?’ Jenny, standing a bit
too close, the scent of alcohol strong on her breath, nodded at Keiko.

Keiko’s skin paled, her hands clutching tighter
over her purse.

Yes. Yes she had.

But this was not the kind of thing you talked about
at parties, right? With a wine in your hand, a soufflé in the other, you didn’t
turn to the incredibly attractive man you had just met and start off with the
story of how you had stopped breathing as a child.

But the two men turned towards her. James had a
crumpled, questioning look on his face; the other man looked unmoved.

‘Go on, Keiko, tell them how,’ Jenny encouraged,
gesturing at her with her half-finished wine.

God Keiko hated it when this happened. She writhed
whenever she was put on the spot. Especially when there were men involved.

Feeling her cheeks spike with heat, Keiko swiped at
her skin with the sleeve of her jacket.

‘It was back in Japan, right?’ Jenny’s voice was
slow, pointed, and leading.

It was clear she was not going to let up.

‘Ah, yeah,’ Keiko managed. Her voice shook badly.
It sounded like a wind shaking through her throat. She let her purse drop on
its strap. Taking a sharp breath, clutching her free hand tight over a bunch of
her skirt, she let her gaze dart over James and the other man.

James’ interest was starting to waver, and he gave
Jenny a curled grin.

The other guy was still looking her way. He did not
look interested though. Polite, yes, but it was clear he didn’t care if she
spoke, stammered, of popped.

‘It was during a storm,
right?
’ Jenny,
taking a swig of her drink, actually patted Keiko on the back, pushing her
forward slightly.

Stumbling, tucking her hair nervously behind her
ear, Keiko knew she had to say something.

That’s what you did at parties, right? But why did
it have to be this story...?

The wind rattled through the street outside. There
was a sudden gust as it turned over a trashcan, the metallic clang of it
reverberating above the sound of the music.

‘I was a little girl. It was in Japan. I was
staying with my grandmother. There was a storm. I ran away from home for some
reason, I can’t really remember why,’ with her eyes turned to the ground, Keiko
spoke in a staccato, breathy fashion. She just wanted to get this over. ‘There
was this old shrine in the forest nearby.’ Keiko swallowed uneasily.

The wind picked up outside.

‘I ah... I went to the shrine. It was mostly crumbled
down. But there was this old statue. Anyhow,’ Keiko clutched at her wine glass
harder now, her fingers slicking with sweat. Her heart was loud, reverberating
in her ears. And if she bit down on her teeth long enough, her jaw shook from
it.

She didn’t like this story.

It always unsettled her.

Who cared if it was the one interesting thing that
had ever happened to Keiko Teshi.

‘
And
,’ Jenny encouraged.

‘I died,’ Keiko blinked hard. ‘I mean, I slipped
down into the shrine in the rain,’ she scratched at her cheek.

‘Come on, that’s not the coolest bit. Tell them
about the statue.’ Jenny gestured again with her wine. She was not usually this
crass. Outgoing and vibrant, yes, but the alcohol had obviously gone to her
head.

‘Yeah. Um, I slipped down into the shrine. And, ah,
there was a strike of lightning. It got the statue. It exploded. I ah, I got
covered by the rubble. My grandmother heard it, rushed up from the house. Found
me, resuscitated me and... yeah. I guess that’s the most interesting thing that
has ever happened to me,’ she added under her breath.

James, brow crumpled, nose crinkling up in
amusement, looked quickly at Jenny. ‘Yeah right.’

‘Show him the scars,’ Jenny arched an eyebrow and
nodded at Keiko.

The scars.

Keiko, hand trembling slightly, shifted her hair
back.

There was a large scar that ran the length from her
ear down to the base of her skull.

‘Wow, okay, that does look pretty nasty,’ James
shrugged towards her with his beer.

‘See, told you,’ Jenny smiled at him.

Wow.... This was awkward. Keiko thought as she rubbed
at her arm. At least Jenny hadn’t forced her to reveal the other scars though.

One ran up her side and she would have had to pull
up her top to get access to it. The other travelled down her back.

‘Who’s shrine was it?’

Keiko looked up. The man, the rich one, the
handsome one, the one who’s name she still didn’t know, was talking to her.

He hadn’t looked interested before. Now his eyes
flickered with something.

‘Ah, it was a family shrine,’ Keiko felt her cheeks
begin to flush.

‘No, who was the shrine dedicated to? What spirit
did it worship?’ he clarified. His voice was strong and curt.

It made Keiko blush even harder. She was being an
idiot again, wasn’t she?

‘Ah... Aiko, just some random wind spirit,’ Keiko
shrugged her shoulders, rubbing at her arm even harder.

Then she glanced up to see the look in the man’s
eyes.

It stilled her.

‘Where is your family’s property? Do they still own
it? Is the remnant of the shrine still there?’ For a man who had hardly said a
word to her before, he now bombarded her with questions.

‘I,’ she began.

She never got to finish her sentence.

One of the models that had been floating elegantly
around the party sashayed over. She was wearing a fire-truck red dress, and as
soon as she reached the man, she locked her arm around his.

It took his attention for a second. A single
second. Then he snapped his gaze back at Keiko.

There was an intense edge to it, one that made her
blush further.

‘Victor said you would be here,’ the model purred.
‘Is the great Chase Harlow ready to negotiate?’

Chase Harlow. That had to be his name.

Keiko frowned. Her lips crinkling over her teeth as
her chin dimpled.

She knew that name. Wasn’t Harlow that enormous
conglomerate? They owned the building last night’s party had been in. And this
guy had been there. If his name really was Chase Harlow, then... Christ, did that
mean he was
the
Mr Harlow? Son of the recently-deceased head of the
company?

Keiko turned pink. She matched the color of her
blouse perfectly.

‘Does your family still own the shrine site?’ Chase
repeated his question, that same look in his eyes.

The model tugged on his arm harder, not caring that
she pulled his elbow right into her bust. ‘Chekov will only be here for
tonight, Mr Harlow.’

‘I’ll be right over, I just need to sort this out,’
he said in a clear voice, but his attention did not seem to be fixed on the
model; he was only half turned her way as his eyes locked on Keiko.

For a girl usually as embarrassed and timid as she
was, Keiko was finding this attention a little too much to bear. Just why was
this man so interested in her?

‘Chekov does not like to be kept waiting,’ the
model purred, though there was a harder edge to her words now, her smile
plucking up to reveal her teeth.

‘Fine,’ Chase said through a frustrated sigh.

Then he turned back to Keiko.

The look in his eyes was... something else. Pulling
open his jacket and grabbing something from his pocket, he handed Keiko a
business card in a quick, flick of the move. ‘I’m a collector, and I have a
personal interest in,’ he took an awkward, quick swallow that didn’t match his
usual demeanor, ‘that goddess. Please give me a call.’

And with that he let the model tug on his shoulder
until she pulled him away into the crowd.

James gave an awkward snigger. ‘What was that?’

Jenny walked, or at least stumbled, over to Keiko
and planted a hand on her shoulder, giving her a little shake. ‘That was Keiko
getting the attention of the richest man in the city,’ Jenny said excitedly,
her breath laced with the scent of alcohol.

As Keiko held the card, she stared down at the
clean, neat, gold lettering. Her fingers shook, just a little, then she quickly
crammed the card into her purse.

Why did this kind of thing always happen to her?
Strange things, odd things,
embarrassing
things.

Because Jenny and James were chuckling now,
laughing at how weird
Chase Harlow
had gone around her.

Great.

It wasn’t long after that the Keiko excused herself
from the party. Despite the growing wind outside, she walked out onto the street,
not even bothering to huddle into her jacket. She let the gale tug and pull at
her, chasing away whatever embarrassment still lingered hot against her cheeks.