ROLEPLAY HQ - flashy-death

Perhaps this was just a coincidence, but the cigarettes that had tumbled off of the mountain laying in the ashtray said otherwise. She'd forgotten how many of them she'd smoked, but this was a time for desperation, no? Ai had already ruined her manicure by furiously ripping the acrylic plastic from the nail bed and ripping too deep in the process. A maid had already bandaged them already, hopefully they could do something in time before the actual red carpet appearance would happen in a day or so. Yeah, they should be healed by then. But to say her mistress was freaking out was the farthest thing from the truth. She was losing her mind, and she hadn't moved from the couch for a concerning thirty minutes. Her dress was already off, she could breathe in fresh air and not the fake oxygen left by a tight corset, but the horror on her face had nothing related to actual relief. At all. In her hand was a note, slightly stained by her delicate bloody fingers and with the few words of "I know" on the front. Ai had already opened it, but her eyes never left it. As if it would slip and she'd lose it forever and lose everything. It was a threat, and although death threats were not uncommon from crazy fans who caught her on a bad day or perhaps were ignored because they were being so weird, but this.. This was different. How did this person know everything? Everything, everything! Now was the first time she moved, placing the envelope aside and putting her head into her hands What was she supposed to do? @The Owl

So there was a threat to his business. The man frowned in the nearly pitch-black office, reading a re-reading the paper multiple times. They knew his routes, his connections, his contacts.. This would not do. When someone dealt with his business, there was an unspoken rule to not fuck with him. That's what kept criminals from being exposed. That's what let the police catch criminals. Someone wasn't playing by the rules anymore. And that was an inconvenience. He despised inconveniences. No, not despised.. Obliterated. This person, whoever they are, had issued a challenge to him. One he intended to face, and destroy. He picked up the phone on the desk, issuing a single command to the person on the other line: "Find anyone who has received one of these threats. Find the pattern, and report back to me." The man's voice was full of venom as he spoke, and then the phone was hung up. His eyes scanned the room one more time before vanishing into the darkness. @Kars

As for Ai she felt as if she'd break out into a nervous breakdown. She turned, looking at the silver platter and when she raised the bowl top she took the medicine underneath it and swallowed dryly. She reached for the half empty glass of wine before she was stopped and handed a cup of water instead which helped it go down better. The scandals she could handle, the paparazzi is the reason she got one of those very expensive gates and extra security so if she did something in which whatever she wanted, it was her business and no one else's. She paused, looking to the vintage but still working telephone that sat on the stand next to her lavish sofa. She hadn't called him before since there were often times he had to kill her workers, for reasons others paid for, no? Sounds selfish. She scrunched up her nose and bended her fingers away from one another's bandaid before picking up the phone and quietly dialing the number. She kept her familiar maid nearby, just in case. Yes, just in case. And now she sat with the buzz in her ear as if waiting for someone to pick up. Should she yell at him, curse him? @The Owl

"Was there something you needed?" The answer came quick, with very little in the way of emotion in it. Whenever he was dealing with potential customers, he kept his voice monotone and completely calm. It helped with the image he was trying to build. As he answered the call, Khal was standing in an alleyway, eyes following those who walked past, not that people were able to see him. He needed to identify who, or what, had revealed the information. The first step to removing any possible threat was to eliminate the cause of it first and foremost, and then move onto the other parts of it. Removing the rat would eliminate the source of information, and then he'd be able to watch for another one to form. @Kars

"I was hoping you knew what the fuck was going on.." Her voice wasn't entirely familiar but that attitude was, plus, the number. She was now smoking another cigarette, god bless her actual lungs because by the end of this she wouldn't have a very fruitful when she got older. She put it aside, the maid going to retrieve it as she resumed the phone call. She didn't appreciate him as stated before because of killing her workers and some of her best men... Perhaps he's killed a good celebrity "friend" of her aswell. "..Someone delivered this shit to my house and-" @The Owl

"Hm. So you've received one as well." Well, that was one less person he needed to get a report about. It'd save him time and resources, at the very least. "No, I don't know all of the details yet. Someone out there is attempting to remove several prominent illicit businesses for whatever reason. Whatever their intentions are, they'll regret the day they picked a fight with me. Keep your men out of my way, Miss Ai, if you value their lives." @Kars

Khal

"I've tried to keep my men out of your damn sights for the longest, it doesn't matter if they are in your way or not regardless." This frustrated her to no end. Keep her men out of his way? She's been doing that for a long time! She paused, seeing on her actual cellphone someone had notified her of the recent red carpet instance she had to do in the next hour. Who the hell does a flashy thing a day or two before the red carpet and calls in a pre carpet party? She sighed, resuming the phone call. "So, I see. It's a threat to everyone?" @The Owl

"And yet i've had to eliminate ones that were a little too curious for their own good." He said, staring at one particular group of people. Watching them talk amongst themselves. Listening to their conversation. "That remains to be seen, Miss Ai. It could be a targetted attack against a select few, or something more widespread. I will know soon enough." @Kars

She inhaled deeply and then exhaled. No Ai, be calm, be calm because you don't need him exposing you going batshit crazy over the phone either. "Fine. But the moment you figure out who it is, you slice them ear to ear with my trademark on the side of their damn head.. Might be a crazed fan.. Though I see no marriage certificate to sign." @The Owl

"Your crazed fans would not target several large businesses in the underworld. But I intend to make an example out of them to show what happens when you threaten me and my business." He said quite rudely. Did she really think that a 'crazed fan' would know so much about this many illicit organizations, and threatening all of them at the same time? No, there was something more going on here. This wasn't a crazed fan trying to get attention, it was an attack on the underworld of the city. @Kars

"There are times where I don't need your services.. Including dealing with fans who just can't get it through their head that perhaps a celebrity they adore isn't exactly the right one to investigate.." As of now she's filing down her long acrylics, being that of course she wanted them at a "scary" point as part of her look. She stared at her cellphone for a bit and then clicked the close button in which the screen turned black. "Who do you think it could be?"

@The Owl )

"Ah, the failures of stardom. Always in the spotlight, targetted by those who don't know the word 'consent'. This is why I work in the shadows, Miss Ai. It helps to remain hidden. At least, that's how it had been, until now. As for who it could be, I don't know the mastermind yet, but there are likely traitors within these companies. Someone with access to the information that someone would need to take them down. I'd suggest you start there." @Kars

( @Kars COUGH)

"...Interrogation then." Ai said, slowly looking over at the team of staff that was quietly walking around and tending to the rest of the house. The one next to her was busy checking her phone, though now in her eyes everyone was suspicious. Everyone. Absolutely everyone. She sighed heavily, standing from her couch and walking around though keeping herself close to the line of the telephone. "..And you would tell me who it is, no? But then if you're ya know.. NOT a person.. Would it mean it would be someone like you?" @The Owl

"If telling you suits my situation, I would. If not, you'll have to pay like the rest of my clients." He said, his eyes narrowing. "If you're thinking that it is another informant, then it is a damn fine one. Though, if it was an informant, I don't know exactly why they'd go after these businesses instead of selling their information." @Kars

"Sounds odd. And I know it isn't you killing some of my men and women because you have a particular style to doing so. Someone wants us either dead, exposed, or in prison. I don't plan on being apart of any of them." She says, brows furrowing as she checked her apple watch. Great, she had go work out soon. "If things come up, I'll need to meet with you in person." @The Owl

He scoffed. "Of course i'm not going out of my way to kill your men. That's bad for business, and I only do it to send a message to the rest of them. And whatever prison they try to trap me in won't be able to hold me." Another scoff. "I don't meet people in person, Miss Ai. I send representatives."

"Understandable for the most part.." She said, rubbing the back of her neck. "Then figure out something. I have to go to an event, I don't have time to discuss your politics." With that she hung up, and the dial tone came back with an 'errrrrr'. Ai stood from the sofa, hurriedly marching up the steps. She'd figure out something. Something, anything. Her business could not suffer. @The Owl

He frowned as she hung up on him. Damn celebrities, always thinking themselves so much better than others. He faded back into the shadows, heading to another point to listen in on another conversation. This is what he spent the day doing, watching and observing points in his network of information, working to find the one leaking his secrets. There had to be multiple people turning against him, due to how his system worked. The only one who knew where all his pieces lay was him, so there was a traitor network within his business, one that he'd root out and destroy. After a day of information gathering, he was at Ai's event, watching from the back with his arms crossed. @Kars

Ai for the most part was flashy as always, wearing gowns that hugged her figure though remained backless for her tattoos and such. Her hair was done, makeup done, and that fake million dollar smile said it all. She hated doing this, perhaps she hadn't been ready to do something which required all the attention on her and now she was forced to do it regardless. She smiled at those around her, waving with those long red nails. Though most of the evidence came up fruitless, only mentions of suicide and other difficulties. It's almost like they knew they'd be dying. @The Owl

He scowled as he watched the show, shaking his head. Celebrities were so fake on stage. Their clothes were fake. Their smiles? Fake. The show? Very likely fake as well. The people loved her for the image she put on, if only they knew what she did behind closed doors. That was the intention of the mystery man. To reveal these secrets to the public.. To someone like him, that wasn't too harmful. He'd just fade away and start anew in another big city. For the public figures, such as Ai, it'd be devastating. They survived off of their image, and if that image was destroyed.. They'd have nothing left. She'd be ruined. It seems that the traitors knew that he'd come after them when he found out, so they killed themselves to avoid him finding out who they gave the information to.. Perhaps Ai had similar issues. They'd have to speak after the show. @Kars

Ai felt as if her heart would leap from her chest. She was furious on the inside, though days at the dentist for a multi million dollar grin were much more nicer than that. She turned, and she could feel her veins fold. She's ANGRY angry. She wants to smack whomever is doing this out of the goddamn park. She turned back, resuming the smile. Had Khal found anything yet? Is there a good restaurant nearby? Then again this is all she really thought whenever she did some dastardly shit like this. She walked over, through the midst of cameras with the excuse she needed to use the restroom. She needed to find a way out. Get the damn limo and haul ass, waste herself on a few drinks and so on. @The Owl

He noticed her leaving, so he melded into the shadows and appeared soon ahead in her path. "..Miss Ai." A quiet nod to her as he appreared. "Have you had any of your employees leave your service lately?" @Kars