After Reincarnating, My System Quit!

(A/N Sorry I had an aggro wife! She made me do... stuff...)

Chapter 59  Long Night Downtown! by Harem-Fan

     Due to it being the start of September, the sun is setting now and darkness is covering Star City.

     Click Click Click! The only sound coming from the two of us would be Victoria's high-heels on the concrete.

     Seeing Victoria in her dark-blue lady-suit, I looked at my long-coat and decided I can just bring one gun on me, while going out with her. I can tell by her eyes she is nervous around guns. Plus I have no idea where she wants to go.

     "Miss Long one moment, I need to drop off some of my extra armaments in my SUV and take off the heavy jacket."

     Our cars are parked near each-other so no problem. The back end with my equipment is bolted down with a thumb-lock so I am not worried about a break-in in the car, and to make sure the SUV is not hot-wired, I remove a fuse in it and hide it in the car.

     Since my ballistics are ruined thanks to the Monk, I take my father's Beretta M9A4. I am taking this one because it's the only gun I have a suppressor (silencer) for and it's light and compact to add to the gun on a simple twist.

     So now I am just wearing my high-quality solid-black Kung-Fu formal-wear with my gun hidden under my lower-back belt.

     I also grabbed my emergency surgical-set to put in Victoria's car for emergencies.

     Curious at the small black-pouch the size of a textbook she asks me.

     "Is that a gun case?"

     I unzip it for her and tell her.

     "No, this is a portable surgical set I keep with me for bad emergencies. Never know if I come across someone injured, a woman is giving birth, or someone being stabbed."

     "Wait, you can actually use and do all of that?"

     I closed it up and held it and waved to her black BMW 7 series, and said to her.

     "One of my wives is the daughter of the Dean and a genius ER surgeon, so me knowing this is no big thing, so let's go Miss Long."

     Chirp Chirp! She just hit the unlock on the car doors and as we got in, she remembered her eldest sister mumbling something about Rick after she was arrested. She did not hear what she said clearly, but the look of not wanting to get involved with Rick anymore was branded in her soul.

     When the two of us sat in her car she only stared at me for a few moments like she was judging me, so I broke her daze.

     "Did I say something wrong, Miss Long?"

     Victoria was broken from her daze when she remembered the way I changed her car tire, the racing wins, the martial arts, the guns, the killing of a Master assassin from her middle sister's sect, the business knowledge, the surgical set, and the sudden rise into the eyes of all four major families.

     She looked at this man she only thought was kind, cute, and polite at their first meeting, and she realized... She too knew nothing of me like I don't know her.

     "Why did you stop to change my tire that day?"

     I smile remembering when I was coming off the freeway and seeing this car, but if I am honest, it was her looks and the way she carried herself.

     "I at first only noticed your broken-down car, but, when I saw you frustrated, my hands just pulled over like I had no control over my actions. Sure the biggest reason was... I had never seen a woman as beautiful as you, ever."

     I shrug at the open mouthed Victoria and buckle up. Why do I need to lie? It would be stupid to say it was not her beauty that made me pullover, right? If she would have been less attractive or a dude, I would have kept going for sure.

     "Mr Lee, you're a bit honest are you not? But you never bothered to learn my name or receive a reward, you just left. Did you know who I was?"

     I shook my head and said. If this story is on any-other site than Scribble Hub, then it was stolen without permission!

     "Not a clue, just figured you were some important business woman is all. Just the look of helplessness on your face there caught my eye. And who needs a reward for a simple tire?"

     Looking into her purple-eyes I continued.

     "Why did I not ask your name? Probably because I had never felt that kind of attraction in my life, so it was better to ignore it. I had life changing things going on and trying to hit on a woman in distress was not on my to do list. So are we going to sit here all night?"

     Victoria then hit the start button in thought, as she smoothly pulled out of the parking-lot...

-

     As Victoria drives northbound into the Downtown area, classical piano is played on her sound system. What she is listening to is like the song [Sadness and Sorrow], a pleasant and calming piece. Basically she likes instrumental music it seems.

     (A/N [Sadness and Sorrow] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk60F8a7-Jw)

     I see a place on the right I have come to a couple of times for my weddings... The Life Statistics Building. Seeing me warmly smile there she asks me.

     "What made you so happy all of a sudden? I have rarely seen you genuinely smile?"

     I point to the big building and tell her.

     "Mary, Hana, and I had our weddings there, so I have a warm feeling when I pass here. I actually married Hana the morning of the Hospital Ball."

     Victoria was surprised on the last part, and looking back on it, the Dean was super happy that day, so that was why they wore white and black.

     Then Victoria points to a 40 story building right across the street from the Life Statistics Building and tells me.

     "This building here is the Velvet Tower. It is my personal office and home. The lower floors are filled with businesses I have started, like the Velvet Lounge, the business I named the tower after."

     She then turned left and entered an underground parking structure with 7 levels beneath the building. The 4 security guards at the entrance recognizing the owner's car let her in with no issue.

     "The security of the building is high due to the clientele that comes to shop and eat here. Also because of my CEO position. This entire first upper parking floor is reserved for me, a few VIPs, and my personal staff of my companies. The lower floors are for guests and shoppers."

     The two of us get out of her now parked car in a large spot with her name on it.

     As the two of us walk to the large elevator bank with two elevators in it, she continues.

     "The bottom ten floors are each set up for a variety of stores and restaurants. The second floor over the lobby is my Velvet Lounge, a place for entertainers of all types to perform, while it is also like a club for the rich. It supports singers, small bands, comedy acts, and other popular personal entertainment. When we don't have a show, our staff has full-time piano players that also cover vocals."

     Ding! The sound of the doors opening to show a plush and spacious elevator is now here to take us up. Unlike most buildings, there is an elevator operator dedicated to running the lift. This shows no cost for comfort is held back. The bellhop greets warmly.

     "Welcome back Miss Long, where can I take you this evening?"

     As we entered she said to him then me.

     "Hello Benz, for now take me to my office for a bit, and Rick don't be deceived, our elevator operators are actually trained security guards."

     I already could tell this guy was a trained fighter when he looked me over to protect his boss. I nodded and said.

     "Yes, I noticed, it should be about ten years of Kung-Fu, and one of the Western modern styles."

     The bellhop looked surprised and admitted.

     "Azure Dragon Style, your good kid."

     Victoria confirmed that I really had sharp eyes. Although most of the Long security practice it, to even tell length of training is not what most can observe that quickly. Her purple eyes gleamed watching me for the ride up to the 39th floor.

     Ding! The doors opened and we saw a well lit office-space in clean white.

     "Here we go, 39th floor, Victoria Long Inc!"

     The pair of us stepped into the heart of her main corporate floor, and we were in a hallway about 20 foot wide with large open looking rooms on the left and right. Instead of solid-walls they are clear soundproof glass walls.

     On the left side of the high-tech looking office is a large workroom with many office desks with high-end computers used for security, computer defense, and a server-bank. This looks like a corporate intelligence network if I ever saw one, well in movies at least.

     On the right side is also a massive work area with many desks and cubicles with office workers still working late. I can see many manager-offices on the outside windows of the building for executives to be separate from this massive open area of drone workers. They are given high-rise views of Star City.

     Their two departments take up almost half the floor each and are larger. Soon about 100 feet down the corridor we enter a reception lobby for the main office area in the back of this floor.

     The long receptionist desk looks to hold 4 secretaries spots, but only two are currently working. Both black-haired women seeing Victoria say together...

     ""Good evening Miss Long.""

     She only nodded with a smile and headed to the left of the receptionist to her double door office.

     The glass door lets you see a 20 foot corridor leading to a second set of wooden doors. So this mini hallway is like an airlock blocking sound from the reception areas.

     Victoria punched in her code and fingerprint on the door before it unlocked showing she only allows a select few into the main office.

     After we came in she began to explain her company's setup.

     "As you saw, most of the floor only has glass walls and large open areas. This helps reduce corporate espionage making covert movements harder. It won't stop everything but the amateurs are detoured, like interns."

     She points to the right-wall at a large door and tells me.

     "That is my personal restroom, but when you are here feel free to use it. It even has a full shower and towels. I even keep extra suits there for when I don't have time to go upstairs to my home."

     She points to the left-wall and I see a full-sized refrigerator and drinking-bar including a soda-fountain next to the liquor-bar, built into the wall so it does not stick-out and matches the wall color around it so you don't immediately look at it when you walk in.

     "Bottled water, alcohol, soda, snacks, and a microwave for a quick meal. I did not install a full kitchen due to two restaurants being on the lower floors. Help yourself."

     Victoria then walked in the center of the room and in the center is a lowered-floor with a couple of steps, holding two large couches with a 10 x 10 table between the two opposing left and right couches, obviously set for two party talks. The furniture being in a lower part of the floor makes it so she can clearly see everything in the room with no obstruction.

     Victoria then went to her desk that is all white with a light-brown wood-top and put her bag on it.

     "Rick, please be patient for a moment, while I put some of the documents in a safe, then we can get ready to eat."

     Buzz! An intercom from Victoria's desk sounded and she pressed the button, then the voice of one of the secretaries was heard.

     [Tech Manager Shen is asking to come in?]

     "Sure, send her in."

     I am standing at the outside window looking at the now dark Star City and admiring a high-rise view I normally don't get to see. My Acrobatics Mastery is keeping me from feeling woozy seeing the city from this height. I actually used to have a slight fear of heights, from a childhood trauma.

     Knock Knock! Just as I was going to think of that incident when I was 10, the knock and door opening made me turn my head from the window to see who came in.

     In came a woman with a body type like Mary but with long dark-crimson-tinted black-hair tied in a sloppy-bun, and sporting a pair of red-glasses over her blue-eyes. She seems to be in her early 30's. She is wearing a black knee-length skirt and white button-down office shirt. She has on a wedding band of simple gold.

     "Miss Long, the office was abuzz seeing you come in with a young-man. Hello sir, I am the Manager for Victoria Long's corporation, nice to meet you, you can call me Lucy Shen."

     The energetic older woman came to shake my hand, so I did and introduced myself.

     "Hello Mrs Shen, I am Rick Lee, and I am only her student from Star University, so you can calm the rumor mongers, ha-ha."

     After she broke her overly friendly handshake, she handed Victoria some files and said.

     "Security intrusions had been up a month ago when I first started, but the main hacker snooping in your servers seems to have stopped. They did not do anything nefarious but they did leave some nasty monitoring programs behind. I am mostly sure I weeded them out."

     This lady is not ordinary, and she has an advanced level of Kung-Fu as well. And the monitoring program she is talking about is mine, but that was only a dummy program I left to hide the main one, that is running just fine.

     Lucy, seeing my smile, asked me.

     "Mr Lee, do you know about computers also?"

     "Me? I just mess-around with it a bit, but nothing major. I was just listening to your cyber warfare talk like some spy movie."

     She grins and points to the computer-bank room and tells me.

     "Well if you ever want computer lessons you can always find me here and my office is open for someone that wants to learn. If Miss Long brought you here she must see potential in you, well I will go back to my monitoring. Goodbye you two."

     Victoria was surprised that this normally aloof manager she hired a month ago, is actually talking with Rick, like she can tell he is talented and she on a whim asks.

     "Lucy, Rick and I are about to go down to the Velvet Lounge for a bite to eat, would you like to join the two of us?"

     I could tell this friendly woman really wanted to come, but she sighs then tells us.

     "Sigh, My husband wants me home early tonight so I have to reluctantly pass this time, but I want to come for the next one for sure. Plus if this is your first time out, I would only be a third wheel, Ufufu, bye!"

     Victoria and I looked awkward at her statement of a first date. But the lady just left as fast as she came.

-

     Leaving the office, Lucy Shen had a happy smile on her face as she walked back to her main office inside the tech-department.

     Sitting at her desk with three monitors on it, she looks into the one that shows Rick Lee and Victoria Long getting ready to leave the office for their meal.

     "Well it is very good you did not recognize me my nephew. This means I can see you more. Hmm, Seems Victoria is not holding any negative emotions, in fact I think she likes you you little brat. Well, you are not ordinary anymore my little firecracker. You're the only person to ever make father ashamed, fufu."

     Another monitor is currently parsing phone logs of one Alex Renaldo, along with his recent history of his overseas vacation. On another monitor that she is currently typing is bringing up information of the current activity of Debby Tang.

     "Oh? So you are already draining her assets, and a large set of Tang stock were purchased just after, suspicious but at least you are not fully going bandit. Hmm, And those charities seem nice. Rick, you're fun to follow."

     Then she switches the Rick-Vision-TV to see them in the elevator heading down.

     "Velvet Lounge, hmm, lets see who is there now? Oh my, is this going to be a triple-date of foes on a narrow-path, fufu. I best get a bag of popcorn in the microwave!"