Under the Skin Read Free

apologies were customary in Japan, but this seemed like something more than politeness.
    "No, really, it's not a big deal,” he hazarded. “I can wait.” The look that the driver gave him was distinctly unfriendly, making Padraic take a step back.
    "Please think better of yourself,” the other man said, and something about the way that he said it made Padraic take a closer look at him.
    The driver looked like he was about twenty, making him a few years younger than Padraic himself. He easily matched Padraic's five feet, eight inches of height. Padraic found himself staring into black eyes that met his own sharply and with more than a touch of aggression. He looked like nothing so much as a hunting cat on the scent, muscles wound a notch too tight and ready to pounce.
    For some reason, Padraic found that his mouth was dry. He was certain that he couldn't have made a sensible reply if someone put a gun to his head.
    "Incoming,” said Jenner, saving the day as far as Padraic was concerned.
    The door opened and two older men walked in. The driver bowed deeply to them, and Padraic matched him without embarrassing himself, at least.
    "Go ahead and give your presentation,” the driver said quietly. “I'll translate for you."
    "Um, oh, well, good afternoon, er, evening maybe? I'm not sure anymore...” Padraic tried to smile at his audience, who were sitting rigidly at attention in their chairs.
    "My name is Padraic Dahl, and I'm the designer and developer for this method of data storage and retrieval. I hope you'll find it, um, helpful and something that your company will be interested in..."
    If it was one thing that Padraic could do, it was talk about his tech, and he could feel himself relaxing a little. The two men still wouldn't make eye contact with him, but they were nodding along encouragingly enough. Occasionally, his driver-cum-translator would make a slight gesture, letting Padraic know that he needed to slow down, but his presentation went quite smoothly.
    "... and that's about it. Do you gentlemen have any questions?"
    The men stood up, almost in unison, and bowed slightly to Padraic before turning toward the door. The door clicked behind them with a decisive snap, and the driver gazed after them, his mouth tight.
    "I think that went well,” Padraic said hopefully. “I mean, they didn't ask any questions, but maybe—"
    "Severely criticize those entirely in hell” was what Padraic's translation program insisted the driver said.
    "Umm."
    "Those goddamned, motherfucking sons of bitches,” the driver said, switching to English. He dropped into one of the chairs, rumpling his hair in his hands.
    "Well, um..."
    The driver looked up him sharply.
    "You're brilliant.” It was fascinating how the man could make “brilliant” sound like “You had frenzied and violent sex with my mother."
    "Thank you?"
    "You are completely fucking brilliant, and those assholes on the top floor decide before you even get here that they are going to screw themselves over by ignoring you."
    "Ignoring me?"
    Jenner snickered, making Padraic startle. He had almost forgotten that his bodyguard was in the room.
    "Totally. Didn't you notice, Padraic? They were practically snoring.” Jenner turned to the still-seated driver. “Oi, Inoue, if they weren't going to give us a fair shake, why ask us all the way out here?"
    "Inoue?"
    Padraic blinked and looked at their driver again, slowly realizing that he had missed something important.
    "Oh, they're going to listen; don't worry about that.” Inoue straightened up in his chair, a stubborn set to his shoulders.
    "I'll cram your tech down their throats and make them choke on it."
    He glanced up at Padraic.
    "Is there a reason that you're looking at me like that?"
    "Your name is Inoue, like the company?"
    "Exactly like the company."
    Jenner coughed. “In case you weren't listening the first time, Padraic, this is Inoue Minoru-san—I'm guessing he's the son of the company's CEO."
    Padraic could