Hidden Nexus Read Free Page A

low cut top' had been the order. It had hardly been a victory for women’s lib and she'd had no wish to tempt seduction, particularly in a building like that. Consequently she'd tried her best to look as business-like as possible but none-the-less she'd felt his watery eyes slither all over her body. It was perhaps only too clear to her, after all, that he had not only a business proposition in mind.
     
    Despite this she’d launched in.
     
    ‘ Sokaiya !’ she’d said firmly.
     
    ‘ Sokaiya? ’ Fujiwara had looked up in some surprise and leant back against the wall. She'd been able to tell that he was unused to being involved in such activity. She'd also been able to tell that he was unused to being told so severely what to do by one so young and one so female.
     
    ‘ Sokaiya !’ she'd repeated.
     
    ‘You want me sell ‘protection’ services? To which company?’
     
    ‘Yokohama Black Panther.’
     
    ‘The logistics people? Why? Are you involved with them?’
     
    ‘We’re not directly, but well… You don’t need to know the reasons.’
     
    ‘And?’
     
    ‘And… we want you to do what you can to assist them in making the right sort of decisions.’
     
    ‘By threatening disruption at their shareholder meetings?’
     
    ‘Exactly. You’re not so stupid as you look, are you?’
     
    Fujiwara had bristled once more. Too late she'd realized that she'd over- cooked it. He'd marched menacingly towards the bed and before she'd been able to prevent him he had pinned her against the headboard with his knee pushed hard against her chest and his huge hands grasping her throat.
     
    She recalled with a shudder his spitting tongue and rank bad breath. She could remember every single word he’d said.
     
    ‘Listen! I think you're out of your league,' he'd hissed. 'You're playing with the big boys now, or should I say the rough boys - the vermin! You should stick to making tea with the tarts and the Office Ladies. Now listen up! It wouldn't take much for me to push so hard that your nice little titties would be popping out your back and as for my hands... Well... at the moment they're around your throat but who knows where they might begin to wander. So be careful what you say, little lady or I might just begin to get angry and you wouldn’t really want that, would you? Now let’s continue our little conversation, but with fewer insults and a little more respect. You treat me fair and I’ll do the same for you. Got it?’
     
    He'd released her from his grip and returned to his position by the door. It had been just as threatening. There had been no escape.
     
    ‘So Sokaiya? ’ He'd picked up the conversation as if nothing had happened. ‘I thought the government had cracked down on Sokaiya activity.’
     
    ‘That’s what they thought,’ she'd croaked, allowing her hand to gently massage her neck. She'd experienced not just the shock of aggression but also a great deal of pain. 'The only real change is that more and more top companies have resorted to holding their annual shareholders’ meetings all on the same day in order to make it impossible for people like you to attend. But we know you can get around that.’ She’d quoted verbatim what her boss had told her to say.
     
    ‘We’re still skilled intimidators though, aren’t we? If that’s what you mean.’
     
    ‘Yes, well.. . So we need you to create as much panic as you can so the value of Yokohama Black Panther stock will plummet, costing them millions, allowing my boss to move in for a take-over. Either that or they comply and give us what we want.’
     
    ‘And when exactly do you want us to act.’
     
    ‘ The 3rd January - Monday.T heir meeting starts at 4:00pm. Here’s the address.’ She'd passed him over a slip of paper.
     
    ‘I can see why you convened this hasty little meeting, then. Okay – so we create trouble for Yokohama Black Panther. I can see how that helps you, but what do I gain? I mean why should I be so