39 – Cypress Mosaic

Instead ​of ​heading ​straight ​for Manhattan, Joshua ​steered ​the ​car ​toward ​Bedford Road to the ​north. ​It was a ​place perfect for ​enjoying ​speed, ​with ​sparse ​traffic ​and a course ​of ​gentle ​curves that were ​nearly straight.

He cranked up ​the volume ​of the ​music.

The Rolling ​Stones’ Paint ​It ​Black.

Tapping ​the steering wheel ​to the ​intense drum beat of ​the intro, Joshua began ​to sing along loudly.

The ​crisp air ​of ​Pocantico Hills rushed in through the ​half-open window, and Joshua’s ​car ​glided ​over ​the ​winding road as ​if skating ​across ​ice.

Ah, it would ​be ​the absolute best if I ​could be ​with ​him on a ​day ​like ​today.

Joshua ​didn’t ​believe for ​a ​second that ​’Rian’ could evade him forever. The private ​investigator he had ​hired was a ​professional—an expert capable of ​tracking down ​famous figures who ​had ​intentionally vanished. There ​was no way ​he couldn’t ​find ​’Rian,’ who, ​despite ​his striking ​looks, ​was just ​an ​ordinary ​person.

As long as ​he ​considered it ​a ​matter ​of ​time, he could accept both the sense of betrayal from being stabbed in [stolen content]the back by ‘Rian’ and the [Read on Read BL Novels]anxiety of the chase. The sense of achievement upon finally possessing him would only grow that much larger.

He only hoped the detective would find ‘Rian’ before his patience ran out. Because if he found him after he’d already lost his temper, he might feel the urge to leave a mark on ‘Rian,’ no matter how rare a premium specimen he was.

As the song neared its end, the phone in his inner jacket pocket vibrated violently.

Humming along to the ominous melody of the song, Joshua pulled out the phone and checked the caller. The corners of his mouth curled up slightly. It was the private investigator. He turned the volume all the way down and answered the call.

“Have you found something?”

He could sense the man on the other end hesitate for a moment.

[You seem to be in a good mood today.]

“Is it that obvious?”

Joshua burst into laughter, thinking the man was like a little rat for noticing his unusual mood just from a phone call.

[You’ve never been one to hide your emotions very well.]

Seeing that he wasn’t angered by a cheeky remark that would normally have made him snap, it was true that he was in a pleasant mood.

Joshua repeatedly recalled Lorenz’s expression.

Like someone who had their prey snatched away right before their eyes just as they thought they could put it in their mouth. The slight twitch of a pale cheek, the ripple of a jaw muscle, the protruding knuckles.

“Well, shouldn’t I have one or two good things happen to me too?”

[Then today must be a lucky day for you, Mr. Joshua.]

Joshua’s green eyes flashed, and his excited aura settled into a sudden, heavy calm.

“Did you find him?”

[It’s still in the early stages of outlining. However, I believe I’ll be able to give you good news soon.]

Though the man had a tendency to grate on his nerves, he was quite prudent when [visit our site]it came visit our siteto handling business. He wasn’t the type to [visit our site]give an interim report based on some insignificant clue.

Gripping the steering wheel tightly and staring straight ahead, Joshua asked, suppressing his excitement, as if telling him to ignore everything else and just answer this one thing.

“Is he in New York?”

This hadn’t happened before.

His heart hammered until he heard the answer.

[Yes. He is in New York.]

It was the answer he wanted. It was electrifying.

Joshua bit his lower lip hard and slammed his hand down on the steering wheel. His face was full of a wide grin.

[I will contact you again within a few days.]

After ending the call, he turned the volume back up. He played the same song on repeat.

He felt as if he owned the whole world. He felt as though ‘Rian’ was already sitting in the passenger seat beside him.

Driving beneath tree branches that covered his head like a tunnel, Joshua sang at the top of his lungs.

I want to see it painted black

Black as night, black as coal

I want to see the sky completely covered by the sun

I want to see it painted black

I want to see it painted black

■

Perhaps having been told that Lorenz was coming, the child sitting on the sofa didn’t seem particularly surprised. However, tension [unauthorized copy]visit our sitestill lingered in the eyes that looked at Lorenz.

“It’s… well, the first time it’s just been the two of us.”

Lorenz was just as nervous.

Aside from his father, he had no memory of ever feeling particularly nervous in front of anyone. He had never experienced the awkwardness of not knowing what to say. However, the target of a young child felt to him like an unidentified species from another planet.

“You’ve probably heard… Belloti, no, Mr. Elian went to the house in Brooklyn. So it’s just the two of us today.”

As if understanding, the child nodded slowly.

He was a clever child. His father had praised him until he was blue in the face.

As far as Lorenz knew, Lucas had never been stubborn or thrown tantrums for incomprehensible reasons. He was also quick to read and understand things.

“Right, so what should the two of us do?”

“……”

The child only looked at Lorenz with clear brown eyes, unable to express what he wanted.

Lorenz sat in the single chair next to the long sofa to bring himself down to the child’s eye level.

“It’s okay, so bring me something you want to do.”

Realizing he had spoken in the imperative as per habit, he quickly recalled the way Elian did it. He then tried to correct himself, albeit awkwardly.

“Would you… like to bring something you want to do?”

Only then did the child hesitantly leave the sofa and return from the study with something.

It was the card game he played with Elian.

Playing cards alone with this kid without Elian acting as the moderator. It felt daunting, but on the other hand, it was something he had prepared himself for.

Lorenz moved to the long sofa.

He sat facing the child with the cards spread out one by one between them. Just as Elian had done.

He mobilized all his memories to imitate him however he could.

The child sitting in front of him was looking up at Lorenz with eyes sparkling with anticipation, clutching a rabbit doll tightly.

This is… I won’t be able to be as kind and fun as Elian. He’s going to be terribly disappointed.

But there was no room to retreat.

“Would you… like to pick a card to show me how your day was?”

Today, too, the child selected a card with great care. It was a level of seriousness akin to carefully selecting a subcontractor.

The card the child chose was placed in Lorenz’s hand.

A child resting their unauthorized copychin on a windowsill, a unauthorized copyman walking down a road, and [Read on Read BL Novels]two small birds circling a tree.

To Lorenz, they were all just mysterious codes.

“So, this… is a card of a child your age resting their chin on a windowsill. Hmm. It looks like they’re watching the scenery outside. And this man is setting off on a journey…”

Resting one arm on the back of the sofa, Lorenz rubbed his eyebrow with his thumb. He had scored high on the SAT and completed his graduation thesis without any trouble, but he was struggling in the face of decoding these cards. It felt like he was facing the most difficult problem of his life.

He desperately missed Elian’s presence.

If he were here, he would have read the child’s emotions clearly, like a wizard seeing the future in a crystal ball.

Lorenz stared blankly at the child while holding the card.

There were only the two of them, himself and Lucas, in the room.

He suddenly asked the child.

“How is Mr. Elian? Do you like him?”

A nod.

Honest.

It must be nice to be able to be honest, children.

“Should we call Mr. Elian and ask? What the card you picked means.”

Nod, nod.

Lorenz took out his phone and searched for the name Elian Bellotti. Though it was just text, the name seemed to mirror its owner’s beautiful face and uncompromising expression. A faint smile escaped him at the trivial thought.

■

‘Abbraccio,’ an Italian restaurant in Brooklyn Heights.

This neighborhood cafe with a cozy atmosphere, mainly [stolen content]used unauthorized copyby local residents, also became quite crowded on Saturday evenings.

Warm-toned lighting was lit, and light-rhythm bossa nova music flowed. Vincent was in charge of the restaurant’s playlist. If he left it to Matteo, the latter would inevitably play old Italian pop songs or folk music. While ‘Abbraccio’ wasn’t the kind of trendy place people visited to upload to social media, Vincent argued that playing Italian hits from the 1980s was a surefire way to ruin the business.

Elian and Vincent, both wearing long aprons around their waists, together cleared the plates from a table where the guests had just departed. Since it had been a large family group of over ten people, the amount of empty plates was considerable. Elian, stacking the dishes neatly, was as skilled in his movements as Vincent. This was because he had helped out whenever he had the chance since moving from Chicago to New York.

As he set the collected plates down at the kitchen entrance, Lina pointed toward the corner of the restaurant with the tip of her pen.

“Eli, leave the rest of the cleanup to Vince and could you take the order for the guests at table 3 over there?”

“Yes, I will.”