I'll find more answers in the morning...

In the morning, you go to the “theater” and meet up with the rest of the team. Kenji isn’t anywhere to be seen nor is Akiko or Sachio. You can feel a slight pinch of guilt inside your stomach. Whatever you did is done now, there’s no changing that. You remember the money involved and how much you’re going to be getting from now on...if Mikka shows up.

With the AC and furnace working accordingly, you were able to watch the stage and it’s dancers continue. It was pretty easy going for a while, but eventually, when Sachio finally showed up, you started to notice some of the girls whispering to each other. She performed better than she did yesterday, making nearly no mistakes at all. Was this what they were talking about? You glanced over at them, you couldn’t understand a single word. What you could see was their expressions however, they were obviously sharing gossip, as one couldn’t contain a smile behind her last comment.

The lights brightened and another group of ballet dancers went up front while Sachio stepped off. Not even the music could bring you off the subject in mind. You thought about going up to her, but someone captured your eye. Kenji just sat down from across the room. There was no way you’d be able to bypass him without talking to get to Sachio, so you went to him first. At least there you might be able to get some proper information out of last night when you left with Akiko. When you sat across from him, your eyes met, you could tell he was still slightly hungover.

He cocked his head and leaned back. “Good morning.”

“Good morning.”

Silence ensued, so you chased him with your question. “So, how’d last night go?”

He groaned. “I don’t remember anything after you left.”

You sucked your cheeks in. “Ah. Well. Sachio have fun?”

Kenji shrugged. “Couldn’t tell you. I’m sure Zuprik or Mikka has a direct answer for you. They didn’t get as tanked as I did.” He shamefully admits.

Music started and the lights dimmed again. You look back at the stage and see another rehearsal has begun. Kenji yawns, leaning back into his chair. You hadn’t seen Mikka at all, nor Zuprik. You barely noticed Sachio since she didn’t seem quite like herself on stage, where she used to stick out with a smile and purposeful mistakes.

You stood and maneuvered around the chairs to the back area, hoping to find Sachio backstage. Unfortunately, it seems she’s disappeared back here while you interacted with Kenji. A mumbled curse leaves your lips. The rest of the day is spent simply seeing her, you never got an opportunity to actually speak with her. You briefly saw Zuprik, but he was in and out as well.

Finally, towards the end of the day, you ran into Akiko, who looked as normal as you expected her to be, since she was left in the dark, not to mention, she didn’t get drunk. It seems she was...lingering inside a bit longer than the others as they were escorted back to the hotel. When your eyes met, she smiled and tilted her head. “Konbanwa!”

You smiled in return and exchanged a greeting too (?). She approached you watching as a few others stepped through the door. The penetration of cold air makes her pause, but she is soon renewing her advance. Her soft brown eyes squinted as her lips went into a friendly smile. The circumstances brought up before hand hindered its effectiveness. Despite that, you smiled in response.

Even though you wanted to know how she was doing, you tackled her with the question of Sachio’s sudden abstinence between dances. Akiko shook her head, telling you it was for personal reasons. She brought up that she got a late letter from her family and it has been troubling her whole week. It wasn’t until today however, that she started to take the news much harder than she had been.

Ugh...you couldn’t have chosen a worse time to get involved with a corrupted side contract then. Who knows what happened last night while you were gone...You quickly cleared your mind and started to change the subject - it was the only thing you could honestly do. Akiko inquired about Kenji, who noticed he didn’t really seem like himself either. Even though that question was easier to answer; you still wondered what he missed too. Any bad news involving Sachio while he was her sole protector would probably make a mess outta him. Maybe that’ll come handy if you need to use **** on him too? You didn’t know Kenji that well, but you figured that’d be a dangerous card to play against a man like him.

Akiko shared her company with her until it seemed it was only you and her left. You “escorted” her back to the hotel before going to your separate paths for the day. You returned to your room and fermented in anger and questions. This was by far the worst babysitting job you’ve taken since becoming a contractor.

While the day progressed, you grew increasingly curious about the events of last night. You finally broke and decided to find Mikka, bursting out of your room you made your way to lobby in hopes of finding him. Luckily, the room was full of the remaining contractors and RTE personnel, so you were pretty certain that someone in this room was going to be one of your desired “targets”.

You searched the lobby, but to no success. It then you realized you’d probably have to actually speak to one of the personnel members. Talking people was no problem to you, but you weren’t sure how they’d react to your interaction. The way Kenji introduced you to the others made it seem like respect had to be earned - and you were doing a comfy babysitting job at the moment. Whoever you were going to be speaking to wouldn’t see a reason to give you the whereabouts for anyone you were looking for.

A poke of despair ran through your body. Were you really going to have to wait another day before you could find out what happened? Even though it was still pretty early in the day still, you felt your hope dissipate.

However, a familiar face did eventually pop into view. It wasn’t McKinley or any of the others, but it was Scarlet, who you hadn’t spoken to since arriving at Deadwood. Unlike the others, she wasn’t in uniform. In fact, she didn’t have any kind of indication of being a part of any kind of company. Your eyes met and Scarlet replied with a smile before actual words. “Warren! How are you doing?”

She took a few steps back and crossed her arms. “Who are you looking for?”

Surprised by her quick follow-up question, you ask what she means. She just shakes her head this time before continuing her stare. When you don’t answer she lets out a heavy sigh. “You’re talking to someone that has years of experience under their belt. I know what that look looks like.”

Even though you have a few questions of your own, you do want to explore what she has to offer. “McKinley, Kenji, Mikka, Zuprik - you know where any of those guys are at? There’s something I need to ask them.”

“I terminated my contract last night,” she says. “I had McKinley sign my papers and confirm my work. After my last uh...Task went as far south as it was, I was able to get out of this early without repercussion. That was the last time I saw any of those people you just lined off.”

“Bummer,” you cool off and then fall back into thought. “Well, I suppose that’s it for me then. How about you? What are you going to do?”

“Going back south.” She deadpans. “Probably back to Texas...Florida? Ahh, well maybe find work in Neo Torch.”

You nod, understanding her direction, but you have intention in small talking with you. So you quickly end your banter with her and try to leave, but something in your head recalls something. You close your mouth before you can finish your goodbye and you bring your fingers to your lips. “You...owe me, don’t you?”

She looks at you as if you’ve just flipped on a light in a dark room. “Yes, I do...Don’t tell me you’ve already thought of something to cash in?”

“I might actually. I might have to hire you something if you’re up to it.”

Her expression becomes sour. “What do you have in mind, exactly?”

“I just need someone to do a little bit of poking around,” you pause to think to step closer to her. “Either the Japanese dancers or their guards.”

Scarlet's expression widens while her brows then knit. “That sounds like a pretty serious contract...Especially for free here.”

“Hey,” you spread out your arms. “I’m not asking you to kill anyone. Just look around a bit. You can even be seen...Probably. Well. No, try not to be seen.”

She scoffs while her eyes drift to the people that used to work with. Was she really going to take your offer?