InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Fleeting ❯ Audacity ( Chapter 18 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

un_love_you prompt:  #05 – “You can be like me.”

Sesshoumaru drew a deep breath and steeled his spine as he eyed the intricately carved oak door before him.  It had already been a very busy week, with three out of his five internship interviews scheduled; thus, he didn’t appreciate being suddenly summoned to his father’s office in the midst of it all.  

He pushed open the door, nodding once to his father’s secretary as he approached her desk.  “Is he in there?” he asked, unable to keep the annoyance completely out of his voice.

“Hello, Sesshoumaru,” she replied pleasantly, completely unruffled by his gruff tone of voice.  “Your father is on a conference call, but I’ll let him know that you’re here.”

“Thanks,” he grunted, turning on his heel and surveyed his surroundings.  The little waiting area beyond his father’s sanctum sanctorum was completely deserted, so he lowered himself in the far corner seat and kicked up his heels.  Of course he’d make me wait, he groused silently, resisting the urge to loosen his tie and unbutton his collar.  He’d come straight from his third interview to his family’s business headquarters in a bid for punctuality, but he should’ve known that he’d end up waiting anyway.

He sighed.  He’d given some serious thought to just “losing” the message about the meeting and going straight home, but he realized that such resistance was futile – ignoring his father meant incurring even more of his wrath than usual, and he just didn’t have the time or energy to put up with that right now.  Besides, he had to admit, he was curious to know what his father wanted, so seemingly out of the blue.  He was not one to call impulsive, secret meetings – with no warning – in the middle of a workweek.

He glanced up at the ceiling.  At least the internship application rounds were going well.  He’d scored interviews at all five places he’d applied, and had aced the first three, hands down.  Offers were on the table at each one, but there was only one position he really desired – and his SHK interview would be the last of the lot, scheduled for the following Monday afternoon.  That corporation was the only one with an internal mergers department, and it offered the best opportunity for a home base from which to launch his master career plan.  His father had been less than willing to play fair with his inheritance, so he was readying himself taking matters into his own hands, if necessary.

Not that he put much stock into his father’s continual threats to disinherit him – such bullying came along with the territory of being such a monumental disappointment in his father’s eyes.  Not once had he been able to command a look of respect from the man, and it made his blood boil.  He was no slouch; he had worked damn hard to position himself where he was today.  

But it just wasn’t enough to please his father.

The outer office door opened once more, and Sesshoumaru looked up, the knot of dread in his stomach tightening as he recognized the newcomer.

Inuyasha glided over to the secretary.  “Good afternoon, Akiko,” he said smoothly, resting the heel of his hand on the edge of her desk.  “Mr. Taisho requested to see me?”

She smiled at him.  “Ah, yes, Mr. Malliard,” she replied.  “I’ll let him know you’re here.”

“Thanks,” he returned, turning to scope out the small reception area.  Sesshoumaru’s attention was once again on the ceiling, but he wasn’t surprised in the least when his brother chose to sit two seats away from him.

Sesshoumaru spared a glance at the secretary, making sure she was otherwise occupied before turning his attention to Inuyasha.  “What are you doing here?” he hissed, not bothering to disguise the contempt in his voice.

Inuyasha shrugged, looking over the selection of dated reading material on the side table next to him.  “He’s my father too, you know,” he responded in a hushed voice.  “I have just as much right to see him here as you do.”

Sesshoumaru regarded him skeptically as Inuyasha picked up a business journal and began to flip through it.  His mind was working overtime to process this new wrinkle of information, and he did not like the conclusions he was drawing.  It was curious enough that his father had called him in for a meeting, instead of just phoning or sending an obnoxiously coded email, as was his wont…

…but both of them?  At the same meeting?  At his office?

Very intriguing.

“Listen, Sesshoumaru,” Inuyasha began, breaking into his thoughts, “I just wanted to say – ”

“Don’t even try it,” Sesshoumaru interrupted, his tone on the edge of a growl.  “I don’t know what you said to Kagome to get her to forgive you, but I’m not buying it.”

Inuyasha glowered at him.  “I only told her what she wanted to hear,” he shot back defensively, before checking himself.  He cleared his throat, turning his attention to the journal once more.  “Besides, what do you care?  She’s not your girlfriend anymore.”

Sesshoumaru scowled at his brother.  What do I care? he repeated silently.  She’s still my friend, and I still care about her, and I don’t appreciate you worming your way back into her good graces four days before the internship interviews.  He bit back the words, however, instead settling back in his seat with feigned disinterest.  “She’s not your girlfriend, either,” he shrugged, “so I guess your little plan didn’t go quite as expected.”

Inuyasha snorted.  “At least I slept with her,” he muttered under his breath.

Sesshoumaru cut him a murderous glance from the side of his eye, but before he could act on his intentions, the secretary walked over to them.

“Sesshoumaru?  Mr. Malliard?  Mr. Taisho will see you now.”

“Thanks,” Inuyasha said brightly, tossing the journal back on the side table as he stood.  Sesshoumaru fought the urge to roll his eyes as he followed suit, brushing past the two of them as his father’s office door opened.

He met his father’s impassive expression with one of his own, nodding silently in greeting as he went into the office.  Tension coiled in his abdomen as he settled himself into one of the two chairs in front of his father’s desk, his nerves rankling as he listened to his father greet his brother with something akin to professional warmth.  Inuyasha smirked at Sesshoumaru as he sat down on his left.

“Thanks, Akiko,” his father said.  “Be a doll, and hold my calls?  I don’t want to be interrupted during this meeting.”

Oh really? Sesshoumaru thought, eyeing the piles of papers littering the desk in front of him, as his father closed and locked the door.  A wave of apprehension rolled over him, and he cast a surreptitious glance Inuyasha’s way, trying to gauge if he was the only one in the room who had no idea what this meeting was about.  His brother was slumped in his seat, looking utterly bored as he examined his fingernails, but Sesshoumaru noticed a certain stiffness in the lines of his body.

So even he doesn’t know what’s really going on, Sesshoumaru surmised, faintly surprised at how much that thought assured him.  He turned his attention back to his father, who had seated himself behind the desk and was shuffling through some papers.

“So, Sesshoumaru, are you going to tell me why you aren’t applying to do your post-grad internship here?” his father asked without preamble.

Sesshoumaru merely gazed back at him, almost insulted that his father expected him to rise to such obvious bait.  “Are you going to tell me why you invited him to this meeting?” he replied tersely, jutting his thumb in Inuyasha’s direction.

His father raised an imperious brow, holding his elder son’s gaze.  They scrutinized each other for a long moment before he deigned to speak again.  “As a matter of fact, I am,” he began, picking up a thick stack of papers and standing them on end.  “You don’t need to complete an internship, Sesshoumaru.  I’ve spoken with your advisor, and he said this would be a more than adequate substitute for the credit.”

Sesshoumaru’s heart began to thud heavily in his chest.  “What are you talking about?”

“I’m handing you the reigns of Taisho Industrial,” his father announced, letting the paperwork land heavily on the desk in front of Sesshoumaru.  “Today.”

Twin expressions of shock graced the faces of his sons.  “What?!” Inuyasha sputtered, leaning forward in his chair.

Sesshoumaru, for his part, was also reeling – internally.  Taisho Enterprises was an umbrella corporation, made up of many other holdings companies.  Taisho Industrial was the oldest, largest, and most powerful of that portfolio, with stakes in private industry as well as government projects.

It was also the company he had been promised as part of his inheritance, the one he had desired to conquer first, the one at the center of his carefully crafted hostile takeover plans.

So why was his father suddenly giving it to him, after threatening to disinherit him completely?!

He narrowed his eyes as he met his father’s triumphant gaze, folding his hands into his lap as he sat up straighter.  “This wouldn’t have anything to do with Hideki Financial Group, would it?” he asked carefully, striving to keep his tone calm and even.

His father’s eyes gleamed and a small smile curved his lips.  “However did you guess?” he murmured in reply, steepling his hands as he studied his elder son thoughtfully.

Inuyasha fought to collect himself, swinging his suspicious gaze between his father and his brother.  “What are you talking about?” he asked, his frustration and ignorance clear in his voice.

Sesshoumaru kept his gaze steady on his father’s.  “Hideki Financial Group is an investment company,” he explained.  “It’s also an ETF, traded on the stock market.”  They’ve also been sucking up shares in quite a few small-fry companies, he added silently to himself.  He’d had to research the company in preparation for his internship interviews, as two of them required additional knowledge of ETFs and mutual fund management as part of the position.  Hideki was a relative newcomer to the scene, barely making waves, and he’d have thought it far below his father’s interest level, especially considering the effort he was putting into acquiring his biggest business rival.

But obviously not, Sesshoumaru concluded.  I wonder what they’ve been dealing in, to get his attention.

“Indeed,” his father continued, “and Hideki contains two things Taisho Enterprises currently lacks: an investment bank, and serious play on the stock market.”  He’d never wanted to offer more than was necessary of his company to the public, lest he also invite unwanted financial or ethical scrutiny; thus, Taisho Enterprises had only a nominal slot on the national index.  “Both features make it a very attractive acquisition, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Hmph,” Sesshoumaru grunted, the gears of his mind already turning as he attempted to fit the pieces of the conversation together in order to understand what his father was driving at.  It doesn’t make sense, he thought, giving up Taisho Industrial for Hideki – the two are hardly of comparable standing…so that means he’s not trying to sell off or give away Industrial in order to acquire Hideki – so what’s the link?  Unless –

“But what does that have to do with giving him Taisho Industrial?” Inuyasha queried, somewhat indignantly.

Amazingly, his father granted him a patient expression.  “It’s against the law to pursue two major acquisitions at once,” he explained.  “You can only put forth paperwork for one at a time.  If I put Taisho Industrial in Sesshoumaru’s name, it will effectively make it a separate legal entity from the rest of Taisho Enterprises.  That way, I can pursue both avenues at once – making the public offer on SHK under the Enterprises name, while bidding on Hideki under the Industrial name.”

“It’s a win-win situation,” he continued, shifting his attention to Sesshoumaru.  “You will be the second-youngest CEO in the history of the business, and will have a huge, successful merger on your record less than a year into your reign.  Of course, I’ll be running things in reality, so I can make a little more history of my own.”  His gaze lifted up, an air of greed and ambition settling around him.  “I can garner an investment bank of my very own and bring my biggest competitor to its knees, all at the same time.  Now that’s what I call retiring in a blaze of glory.”

Sesshoumaru balked.  “What do you mean, you’ll be running things in reality?”

His father chuckled.  “Given the monumental mess you made whilst trying to prove to me that you could bring SHK into the fold?  It’s obvious you can’t be trusted to run the operation on your own.”

Oh, yeah, it’s totally my fault my relationship with Kagome was ruined, because I wouldn’t use her to get in the back door of her company, Sesshoumaru seethed, feeling anger and bile rise up the back of his throat – not only at his father’s words, but at his condescending tone as well.

“Besides,” his father continued jovially, “you still have that damnable sense of honor, which will definitely need to be drummed out of you if you’re ever going to get anywhere in this world.”  He gave a wistful smile.  “Think of it as a hands-on learning experience.  Besides, we both win in this arrangement:  you get all the glory and prestige of the acquisition, and I can retire peacefully, rest assured that my heir will continue on successfully in my wake.”

Sesshoumaru clenched his fists, the only outward sign betraying his inner turmoil:  a mix of shock, anger, hurt, and resentment.  He didn’t dare respond, knowing he’d very much regret any words uttered in such a state.

If his father noticed, he didn’t acknowledge it.  “It won’t be too hard, I suspect, to juggle both at once,” he mused.  “Inuyasha assures me he has the SHK situation well in hand, and is close to a resolution in my favor.”

Sesshoumaru shot his brother a murderous glare, a wave of jealous protectiveness washing through him.  Inuyasha was again studying his nails with intense scrutiny, though his visage had paled considerably.  “Is that so?” Sesshoumaru muttered under his breath, drawing no small satisfaction at seeing his brother squirm in response.

I hope it’s obvious to you that Father doesn’t give a damn about Kagome or her stake in this, he silently directed at his brother.  If you care about her in the least, you’ll keep that in mind.

“So, that’s the reason for this meeting,” his father continued on blithely.  “This was the fastest way to get you both up to speed on the current plan, and make you both aware of my newest goal.  Now, Sesshoumaru, if you’ll just sign the papers there, I can have Akiko run them down to Legal, and – ”

“No,” Sesshoumaru interrupted forcefully.

His father glanced up, arching a brow at his son’s defiance.  “What do you mean, ‘no’?  Isn’t this company what you’ve been after all along?  I’m giving it to you.”

Sesshoumaru’s eyes blazed with golden fire as he met his father’s disapproving gaze.  “Maybe one day I’ll be just like you, and step on people like you do, but that day hasn’t come yet,” he vowed.  “I won’t be a pawn in your petty power games.”

His father furrowed his brow as he studied him, a calculating gleam in his eye.  “Is this about SHK?” he finally asked.

Inuyasha snorted, reminding them both of his presence in the room.  “You must be pretty confident that you’ll get that internship,” he muttered.

Sesshoumaru spared him a withering glance.  “We don’t always get what we want just by sleeping with someone,” he remarked in response.  He leaned closer, dropping his voice to a low rumble.  “But then, you’d already know that, wouldn’t you, little brother?”

A furious flush stained Inuyasha’s cheeks as his jaw snapped shut.

“So you’re still intent on pursuing that, eh?” his father mused, bringing both sons’ attention back to him.  “I suppose I must give you credit for persistence, if nothing else – seeing as how you’ve missed the point of the exercise entirely.”

Sesshoumaru shook his head.  “No, I didn’t miss the point – after all, I’ve learned just exactly what it means to be your pawn, even without having the experience firsthand.”  He shot another look at his brother, who was still red-faced, though less indignant.  In fact, he appeared almost thoughtful.

“You intend to walk away from this deal today,” his father said, shifting back to the subject at hand.  “My, my, but you do seem confident that the company will be on offer to you again in the future.  What makes you so sure that I won’t disinherit you completely, especially after such a show of obstinacy?”

Sesshoumaru stood, heaving a sigh as he straightened his tie and pulled his suit jacket over his shoulders.  “That’s where you made your one grave mistake, Father,” he informed him.  

His father sat back in his chair, eyeing Sesshoumaru thoughtfully, inviting him to continue.

“For all your flash-and-dance about being ambitious and breaking the mold in your power-seeking empire-building,” he continued, “you have been just as loud and proud about being traditional, especially when it comes to the fate of your companies.”

“You are not my only son,” his father reminded him drolly.

“I’m your only legitimate son,” Sesshoumaru shot back.  “Ever since the day I was born, you have proclaimed me – publicly, legally – as your only heir.  You had to, in order to even get a toehold in this industry in the first place, to have anyone take you seriously as a competitor.  And as much as you have accomplished in the last thirty years, you’re still bound by that very same tradition.”

“With my connections, it would take no time at all to establish Inuyasha’s paternity, or to establish his legitimacy,” his father argued.  “I could will everything to him upon my retirement, and leave you out in the cold.”

“And risk the scandal that would invite?  The scandal you’ve worked so hard to hide these last few years by shielding Inuyasha’s true identity?  The scandal that would ruin you and your life’s work?” Sesshoumaru countered.  “I’d like to see you try.”

His blood was pounding in his ears, adrenaline coursing through his body as he stared down his father.  Do you really hate me that much, Father, that you would cut off your nose to spite your face?  

If so, it would prove the ultimate rejection, one from which he might never recover.

The tension in the room was suffocating as the two men squared off.  Inuyasha glanced from one to the other, silently absorbing it all.

Whatever response Sesshoumaru was expecting – it was not the one he received.

After a long moment, their father’s face fell into an approving smile.  “You may just turn into a worthy adversary yet, Sesshoumaru,” he murmured appreciatively.

Sesshoumaru sat at his kitchen table a few hours later, sipping a cup of lukewarm tea.  He was still trying to process everything that had happened that afternoon, and was grateful, for once, to be home alone, thus having peace to work through his jumbled thoughts.

I can’t believe I did that, he marveled, tracing a groove in the tabletop.  I can’t believe I actually gave up the company I’ve been working so hard these last few years to obtain.

Had he made a mistake?

His father’s threats were very real, and Sesshoumaru recognized that, even in spite of his confident brush-off.  He could do whatever he wanted with his companies.  He could sell them off, or liquidate them, or leave them to any number of close associates.  Only if he left everything to his bastard child did he face the possibility of breaking tradition and being shunned within the conservative business culture – well, more shunned than he already was, thanks to his reputation for shady tactics.

He shook his head.  No, he assured himself, it was the right thing to do.  I couldn’t live with myself if I folded now.  I’d have the company, but I’d have no control over it – and that’s not the end goal.  No, it was better to stick to the plans he’d slaved over for the last few months, ever since learning of Inuyasha’s involvement in his father’s schemes.  There was no reason to think he couldn’t get the position he wanted at SHK…and after the way he handled himself this afternoon, there was no reason to believe he couldn’t take his father head-on, either.

He lifted his cup, taking a long sip.  

Things had just gotten stickier, that’s all…

The front door slammed, bringing him out of his somewhat melancholy reverie.  A few moments later, his flatmate appeared in the doorway of the kitchen, causing his heart to skip a beat.

“Families suck,” Kagome declared, moving towards the stove.

“You don’t know the half of it,” he muttered, taking another sip of his tea.

If she heard his comment, she ignored it.  “This is my last summer of freedom before being shunted off into the real world, and apparently that means it’s the perfect time for a summer job at the family business,” she huffed, fumbling around in her tea cabinet as the water reheated.

Sesshoumaru turned in his seat, watching her with a somewhat amused expression as she bustled about.

“Yes, because that’s the way I want to spend my summer vacation – cooped up in some boring building, delivering mail to all the self-righteous blowhards that work there,” she rambled on.

“Delivering mail?” he repeated, hiding his smile behind his cup.

She shrugged absently.  “It seemed the lesser of the two evils.  At least working in the mailroom will allow me to walk around and not be cooped up in one office all day, staring at the walls and trying not to go out of my mind.”  She chuckled a little as her kettle whistled, withdrawing it from the burner and pouring the steaming water into her cup.  “I guess I shouldn’t complain too much, though – poor Souta got stuck with that duty.”

Sesshoumaru’s heart warmed as she settled herself next to him at the table.  “Don’t you care at all about the inner workings of your family’s business?” he asked curiously.

“Of course I do!” she replied.  “It’s just – well, my dad had this philosophy, about learning business from the ground up.”  She rolled her eyes.  “He was taught that way, and he wanted us kids to carry on the tradition.  So, each summer, we’re supposed to take a job with the grunts and get a feel for how they keep the company moving on a day-to-day basis.”  

She shrugged.  “It’s not until we have enough education and experience to be in your position that we get to see the really interesting stuff.  The cool internships are only available to a select, eligible few.”

“So you’re delivering mail, and your brother is – ?” he asked.

“He’s going to be an administrative assistant!” Kagome crowed gleefully.  “Admittedly, it’s for the PR department, but can you imagine anything more boring for a fifteen-year-old boy?  He’s going to go insane!”

The words went straight through him as he gazed at her.  This was a rare, uninhibited, effervescent moment for her, one he hadn’t seen in ages.  She seemed completely relaxed and happy, if a bit annoyed, but she had never been more beautiful to him.  He liked seeing her like this, so carefree and easygoing, and it only made him feel even worse about how everything had ended between them.

“Sesshoumaru?  Is everything okay?”  Kagome’s words brought him back to the surface, and his gut clenched when he saw the concern shining in her eyes.  She looked away, her voice softening as she asked her next question.  “How did the interview go today?”

“Aced it,” he replied loftily, pushing a hand through his hair.  “They made me an offer.”

She nodded, chewing on her lip before facing him again, her expression cautiously guarded.  “Are you going to take it?”

He shrugged, leaning back in his seat.  “There’s only one job I truly want,” he admitted.  And knowing you’ll be around as well only makes me want it more, he added silently.

A faint blush rose to her cheeks as she nodded again, taking a sip of her tea.  “Then why the long face, if the interview went so well?” she prodded after a moment.

He hesitated, unsure how much he was willing to disclose to her about his personal business.  On the one hand, it really had nothing to do with her, and she was probably only asking out of idle curiosity…

…but on the other hand, not telling her the little things had been one of the reasons their relationship had fallen apart.

“I had an unexpected meeting with my father after the interview,” he finally said.  “He rather strongly suggested that I give up the internship hunt and go to work for him.”

“Oh,” she sighed, a mixture of sympathy, understanding, and disappointment gracing her face.  She sucked her lower lip between her teeth, and it was everything he could do to keep his eyes trained to hers instead of allowing them to drift downward…

“I refused,” he continued after a moment.  “I won’t compromise myself, not even for him.”  

She granted him a small smile.  “So you’ll be there on Monday, for the interviews?”

He nodded in response.  “Of course.”  

Her smiled grew, even as she tried to hide it behind her cup.  “For once in my life, I have to say I’m looking forward to the process,” she admitted.

He inclined his head, answering her smile with one of his own.  “So am I,” he agreed.