Day 265 - Friday, September 12th

[papalobo]

[A Chinese man who is definitely a mature adult and not a teenager checks in to the Hyatt, one of their more exclusive rooms, along with his half-white half brother who is also certainly not a teenager and most definitely not the notorious gang leader wanted on suspicion of a September 11th New York City bombing in retaliation for an angry rogue sect of anti-American zealots.

The entire suite floor has been rented out, and it requires a special key card in the elevator and on the stairs to enter that floor. But they can rent one of the still very luxe rooms directly beneath.

A familiar white limo is in the car garage, though the opportunity to gawk or investigate is slim, between the security cameras and live guards.

There's still no contact from Max, but the Department of Homeland Security has become involved, and has begun to enter Ash's territory with intent to arrest any known figures within his gang to bring in for questioning.]

Day 284, Wednesday, Oct 1st

Comments

[jadedlynx]

I used the front door.

[ He doesn't work too hard to hide the fatigue in his voice; Ash is sure Blanca would hear it anyway. ]

Still in New York?

[sentimentalstoic]

I am.

[jadedlynx]

The house was probably torn apart. I'm going to survey the damage, grab clothes, and head to a hotel. It's not going to be romantic but want to join me? We can have dinner before I check in.

[sentimentalstoic]

It'd be a pleasure.

[He talks casually, as if ultimately all that happened, as if Ash returning home to survey the home and expecting it to be a mess more stressful to deal with than relocating to a hotel for the night, is fine because the net end is a (not romantic) date.]

[jadedlynx]

[ It's not a date. It even ends at the hotel. But, he doesn't not want to see Blanca which is more than he can say for most other people that aren't Max. ]

Did you move the cats?

[sentimentalstoic]

"Move the cats" ?

[jadedlynx]

Somebody got them out. It must have been Max.

[sentimentalstoic]

It was.

[jadedlynx]

They haven't let me talk to him.

[ Ash also wants Blanca to be around when he takes his medicine for the first time. Even that has lost any semblance of safety. ]

[sentimentalstoic]

They haven't?

[He's mildly surprised by that. From what he knows, Max isn't possibly to link to anything especially heinous, that Ash is out first is another surprise.]

[jadedlynx]

Hn. Until his publisher got a lawyer, I wasn't even allowed to speak to anybody who wasn't interrogating me.

[sentimentalstoic]

I'd have expected his publisher to have an easier time getting him out than you, but then, depending on your mood, he may put up more of a fight with the guards...

[jadedlynx]

He's probably putting up a fight, and my guys are under investigation for abuse so I got a free time out.

[ It's Blanca. He'll find out. ]

[sentimentalstoic]

[It's news. It's something he didn't know. But it'd be a stretch to call it surprise.]

I see.

[jadedlynx]

[ Even if he hadn't known yet, Ash knows he would have. At the very least, he doesn't want to act normal when they're in person. He's tired. Not all of the bruising is gone, either. ]

The lawyers are still working on getting me in to see him. Their side is trying to get a confession out of me first. It's their biggest card.

[sentimentalstoic]

Hm. [He makes a noise as if disinterested and changing the topic.] How hungry are you?

[jadedlynx]

Not very, but enough to eat somewhere near the hotel.

[sentimentalstoic]

But not in a rush.

[jadedlynx]

I need to check the house. It'll probably need to get it professionally cleaned. We can eat after I check it out.

[sentimentalstoic]

It's been a while. If I want to dress up a bit and take you out first, you'll humor me, won't you?

[jadedlynx]

Today?

[ The fatigue is obvious. ]

Treat me at home instead. I don't want to see anybody else. There's bruising on my face.

[sentimentalstoic]

Even though it sounds like you'd chosen to be cooperative this time?

[jadedlynx]

That's why it called abuse.

[sentimentalstoic]

Still visible, and on the face where it will be the most obvious and sympathetic before a court.

[jadedlynx]

The bruises will fade before any court date. They're lighter now. They didn't plan on being found out this soon. An infection sent me to the hospital.