. . .
"Good evening, Miss Ricci," a voice greeted her the moment her soles felt the carpeted floor. "I believe you already know me?"
A fresh stain had Greissha Ricci's eyes fixated on the couch before moving up to the man who just spoke in a thick Japanese accent. Sitting in front of her was Deputy Prime Minister Chikako, whom she believed to have caused the bloodstain on her white couch, with dozens of burly men standing behind his revolting presence.
"To what honor do I owe this visit from you, Minister Chikako?" Greissha said, her hazel brown eyes boring weight onto the prime minister, her demeanor revoked any hint of panic as if seeing a stranger inside her home in the deep of the night wasn't much of a spectacle.
"I'm here to talk about the gold mine you dug," the minister said, his attempt at delivering his intentions implicitly falling flat with a lame analogy. "Care for some tea?"
Greissha sat across from the minister, the potent smell of black tea fanning over her nostrils while sitting down. "I believe this gold mine you speak of is your plan to oust the Korean and the Japanese leaders," she said. "I learned about your plans by accident, unfortunately. Believe it or not, I have no use for this information. I'm better off not knowing anything."
The minister laughed, momentarily setting down the cup of tea in his hands. "I don't care if you're uninvolved, but I won't let a single slip off cost me years of hard work and years of future success. There's only one way for you to get out of this mess, Miss Ricci."
Prime Minister Chikako bore his eyes on to Greissha as she nonchalantly poured herself her own tea, feigning ignorance to his threats.
"It was nice meeting you, but I'm afraid this is goodbye," Chikamoto addressed her one last time, "Miss Ricci."
The men behind the minister immediately revealed their weapons. Greissha, now surrounded by a group of armed men with nowhere to run, being on the 45th floor of a high-rise building, was as good as trapped, death knocking right at her door. But she was not gonna go down in a bloody mess. Not on her favorite white couch.
"10 billion dollars," Greissha Ricci set the cup down rather harshly before putting ten of her fingers up, still with a straight face amidst dozens of firearms aimed at her face. "You need 10 billion dollars to fund your coup against your Prime Minister, don't you?"
The minister raised his arm, a signal for his men to hold their arms. His face revealed both his interest and innately cunning nature. "Hmm? I didn't know we'd be up for a negotiation, but go ahead. I'm all ears."
Greissha laughed. "You stepped into the office of the wealthiest woman on earth not to negotiate but to kill? You earn my respect for being ruthless."
The prime minister laughed, as if pleased by her words. "I earn my reputation," he leaned forward and displayed a devilish smirk, "Now, where were we? Ahh... the ten billion dollars..."
"I can give it to you right away. It's a small amount of money," Greissha said, "But I'm a businesswoman, not a kingpin. I don't work with guns."
The sound of Chikamoto's vile laughter echoed around the room, filling every crevice of the entire complex with dread at midnight. He slowly nodded, even racking his forefinger back and forth to acknowledge Greissha's willfulness before beckoning for his men to step outside. "Sure. I don't mind being alone with a beautiful woman at midnight."
Once the burly men were out of the conversation, the two continued on their agenda.
"Ignoring whatever it is that happened earlier," Greissha walked toward her table to grab some blank papers. "Since you are willing to consider my offer, it's essential to draft a contract."
The prime minister watched her every move with amusement. Who in their right mind would casually draft a contract with a man who bestowed upon her a death threat? Greissha Ricci was one heck of a woman.
"I don't care whatever happens to this world," she continued. Her voice not shifting in tone even for a bit. Chikamoto himself could vouch that this woman meant every word she was saying. "For all I care, you can find another harbor to bomb and I'm not stopping you. Heck, do I care if you killed me now," she said, "But I can't die yet. Just like you, I have some unfinished business."
"Oh? Is that so?" Chikamoto's intrigue toward Greissha peaked as he saw himself confronting an equal. "I do feel now that we have many things in common, Miss Ricci."
"We're fueled by worldly things. You by greed, and me by revenge," Greissha replied, "You have the world to conquer, so you can't die yet. And I can't die yet. Not without letting the people who wronged me suffer."
Chikamoto laughed. "What do you mean that I can't die yet? It's only your life that's on the line and not mine, Miss Ricci."
Greissha smiled. "Oh really? You think you're the first person to barge into my house at midnight?"
She took a sip of tea before pulling a hidden compartment under her table. Chikamoto flinched for a second and was about to call for his men before Greissha Ricci pulled a teaspoon out.
"Pardon," she smiled, aware of the fear she instilled in the minister's eyes, "the tea you brewed wasn't to my liking, so I have to add some sugar."
Chikamoto's laughter filled the room once again. This time, his eyes were as ruthless as they could get. "Interesting."
With the tension building up, and a contract neatly drafted, the two reached a consensus that night.
. . .
"Are you alright, Miss Ricci?" Felise ran toward Greissha. The four of them were in fact watching the entire conversation from a different room because all of them expected this would happen.
"I'm alright," Greissha replied.
"That's right. You can't die yet," Lily said, both her hands caressing her mistress' hair to relieve herself of worry, "Whoever it is you want to suffer, I'll support you and your plot for revenge."
"Revenge?" Greissha's eyebrows arched, her lips parted still for a few seconds before forming some words out, "Did I say that I have to live for revenge?"
Her four companions nodded.
"Oh, right," Greissha shrugged her shoulders, "That was an obvious lie. I couldn't tell him it's because of a sitcom I'm yet to binge, can I?"
"What?" Felise said, both her hands grasping her head in disbelief. "You wasted billions of dollars for television content?"
"Then do you suggest I let them kill me instead?"
Leon bobbed his head back and forth. "For a second I pitied Mr. Lee, thinking you were still unhappy with his punishment. I guess you've become more lenient," he pouted, "When we were still your students, you punished us rather severely for a little mist—Ow!"
Felise pinched Leon on his side, and the two bickered immediately, like their usual setup. Greissha, on the other hand, pondered on a single word while both Timothy and Lily got in between the two.
Revenge?
Her lips went agape before forming a thin, sinister smile. Revenge was not exactly her thing. All the people who crossed her suffered immediate consequences with no elaborate planning involved. No one who ever got on her bad side was happy enough for her to still seek revenge. Miserable. Everyone who wronged her became miserable.
Except one person.
There was indeed someone. Her best ally, but also her worst enemy. A person she simply swore to forget. Screw revenge. She would rather die than have any involvement with that bastard.
"What are we going to do next, Miss Ricci?" Timothy said, snapping her out of her reverie. "We know how ruthless Prime Minister Chikamoto is. If I am correct in my estimate, then he'll probably..."
"So be it," Greissha said. "Whatever it is he hurls toward me, I'll just keep count until I'm ready to hurl it back three-fold."
Timothy nodded, and the other three had already ended their commotion to listen to their mistress' thoughts.
"I already know his weakness," she continued. "He fears death, and I do not."
. . .