Hidden Secrets

Chapter 70

Restlessly, Seiya paced back and forth in his office. It was late in the evening, and progress was slowly being made. Shortly after his call to Taiki, a special unit of Yaten's men appeared at the harbor, and his brothers also arrived shortly thereafter. Haruka took on the task of escorting the men to the archive and informing them of what to look for, while Seiya continued to try to figure out what was in the missing containers. Taiki only gained a rough overview, cursed his father-in-law, and soon bid farewell, as he had other matters to attend to. The eldest seemed to be equally agitated as Seiya when he left the harbor.

Yaten, on the other hand, seemed to be the epitome of calm. He lay casually stretched out on Seiya's couch, blowing smoke rings into the air. "Hey, Seiya, go home. Your tension is unbearable. I've got this under control, and I'll call you when we're done," he called out to his brother, reaching for the ashtray.

"And then? Do you think I can relax at home? Just for the fact that all the lists don't match, they could accuse me of tax evasion or smuggling of any kind. Do you know how long I could go to jail for something like that?" the black-haired man protested.

"Finally calm down. Downstairs, there are not only members of the special unit. After I found out what it's about, I naturally ordered accountants and lawyers as well. They'll make sure to make adjustments so they can't pin anything on you. So please, just do me the favor and go to Serena's, distract yourself, and give me some peace here. Taiki left hours ago already. I've got this under control," the silver-haired one grumbled back. That he liked to work quietly was nothing new to his brothers, and he hoped that Seiya would finally leave. After all, he had more on his agenda, and Seiya didn't need to know everything before it was finalized.

Skeptically, Seiya crossed his arms over his chest. "Under control? You're lying here on the couch while there's chaos downstairs."

Yaten snorted irritably and straightened up. "Either you leave now, or I will. I know exactly how to allocate people to make it work, and I'm afraid you don't even know most of their names downstairs. Leave it to me. Tomorrow your problems will be a thing of the past. Go to Serena's and relax a bit."

There was a brief staring contest between the brothers, but then the older one finally gave in. He grabbed his jacket and snorted once as he walked through the door. A victorious grin spread across Yaten's lips after the door closed behind his brother. Finally, he had his peace.

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Usagi sat with Taiki in their apartment. Amy had withdrawn to give them the opportunity for an open conversation. Usagi urgently needed to talk to him about her encounter with Minako and was relieved that Yaten seemed to be occupied elsewhere. After all, she had promised Minako that he wouldn't find out about anything. Thoughtfully stirring her tea, Usagi pondered how best to broach the subject. Her husband watched her patiently, sipping his coffee.

"So... it's like this. Mrs. Chiba is actually my sister," she began hesitantly, without looking up.

Taiki nodded in agreement. "I assumed as much," he said calmly, continuing to scrutinize his wife. Amy had already told him that Usagi and Makoto had disappeared into a back room after their presentation, so it was likely they had encountered Minako there.

Usagi took a sharp breath. He needed to know, she told herself. "She's pregnant, very pregnant," the blonde woman now blurted out, keeping her thoughts on paternity to herself for now.

The brown-haired man stared at his wife in utter shock. It was clear that this fact came as a complete surprise to him. It was a revelation he hadn't seen coming. Of course, he had already anticipated a secret, but a pregnancy hadn't featured in any of his scenarios. Usagi waited for a moment and then added to her statement: "She's already in her seventh month, which means she had already passed the critical time at the supposed time of her accident. Her decision to keep the child likely led her to fake her own death."