Vindicta - a TEMPER sequel (Excerpts)

Chapter 1

"Let's go over it one more time, Koga san," Lana said, a red ball pen swirling between her fingers. "On Mondays, after the general department meeting, you--"

"Oh, come on, really? We've been through all of this," Gabriella groaned before throwing a ball of paper into the basket near the opposite wall of her friend's office. "Koga san knows her job, and by now can do yours in her sleep. You know, there's this magical thing called the Cloud. And have you heard of 'emails'? We'll be constantly in the loop." She switched to Italian and nailed Lana's coffin with a knowing grin. "So much that I bet sensei will end up hiding your laptop, Yuki san your smartphone... and they'll make you beg for them."

With a laugh, Gabriella barely dodged Lana's pen while Koga hid her grin behind her stack of documents. No need to speak Italian to see that Lana's leg was being mercilessly pulled by her best friend.

"Are you done undermining my authority?" Lana exclaimed with a false aggravated tone and a mock slam on her desk.

"Nice try, cara mia, but next time try not to blush bright red when delivering this line," Gabriella smirked. "Sha-cho would be so disappointed if he saw you right now." She chuckled again at Lana's dark glance.

Nakazawa Toshiro, the president of their company and incidentally Lana's father-in-law, instilled mortal fear in the heart of his employees. In this case, the odds were high he would join Gabriella in teasing Lana endlessly. Except for her friend, nobody knew they were family. After all, his children had all been married for years and none had divorced. It just happened that his daughter had now a second spouse, who was also the biological mother of her children. A bit too complicated to explain in their newsletter.

Lana shook her head, half delighted by such easy banter with her best friend, half annoyed to have her micromanagement tendencies slung at her face. At the same time, it was highly unusual for anyone to be away three weeks in a row. Let alone the number one and two of an entire department going away together, with the company's president in tow. She didn't want any backlash down the line. Thank goodness we could wrap this whole thing up into a business trip.

"All right, all right, we're good. You know you have my full confidence, Koga san. I think I'm just afraid I forgot something crucial. But like my guardian... devil just pointed out, you'll be able to reach me anytime." Gabriella cleared her throat and looked up at the ceiling. Another blush creeped on Lana's neck when the vivid image of her creative spouses making her beg in the most delicious way flashed again in front of her eyes. "Well, almost anytime. During daytime in Italy. And when I'm not otherwise busy."

With a nod and a beaming smile, Lana's personal assistant stood up. "Understood, Martin san. Vincenze san, I also talked with Noguchi san and we'll coordinate our work together."

"Awesome! That's what good teamwork looks like. On our end, we'll make sure to report all the meetings sha-cho will conduct in Milan and Rome. This is going to be a great overseas trip! An excellent opportunity to showcase the efficiency of Lana's strategy."

Lana grimaced and rubbed her face. "And now you jinxed it! Do I have to remind you that a lot of people are lying in ambush for the whole thing to crash down?"

Her friend scoffed and swirled on her chair. "Let them rot while waiting for the impossible to happen. It's the only way to go, and the entire Board is on it now, not just sha-cho. Do what you need to do, and let us the distinct pleasure to strike down anyone trying to come after you," Gabriella said with a dangerous grin.

Koga nodded vigorously. "Oh yes, Martin san. Don't worry. You've gained the trust and loyalty of many people here."

Lana had to look away to hide a sudden burst of emotion. "Oh, wow, thank you. It means the world to hear this. Well then, while I'm away, do your best to do like I or Gabriella would: don't back down, and aim for the best results, not for the lesser evil. You've got our full support and sha-cho's as well."