ArchivedLogs:Inconsistencies

Inconsistencies
Dramatis Personae Melinda, NPC-Tian-shin
In Absentia	2013-08-19 Tian-shin wants some answers, gets more than she bargained for.
Location <NYC> Jin Hua Yuan Bookstore - Chinatown
This bookshop occupies a prime location off Canal Street, and is located on the first floor to boot. It even has its own entryway, beside another nearly identical door that leads to the stairwell that accesses the apartments above. Intentionally or otherwise, the doors are a test. The /correct/ door on the left bears a print depicting several ethereal women in traditional Chinese outfits playing traditional Chinese musical instruments among flowers blooming in the snow. Very few Chinese-speaking visitors pick the wrong door. Inside, the store is claustrophobic, tall shelves packed just a little too close together. Long fluorescent tubes in the drop ceiling keep the aisles well-lit, though one of them is aging and visibly flickering. A counter beside the entryway boasts a cash register, a brush rack, an inkstone, and a PC monitor. A lanky young Asian man with a longish buzz cut sits behind the counter, a thick textbook open in front of him. A pair of headphones hang around his neck, blasting Hip-Hop in the general direction of his ears. His head bobs more or less in time to the music as he applies sticky note tabs to the page. The portion of the book he has already perused /bristles/ with such tabs. The door opens and he calls out “{Welcome!}” in Mandarin before even looking up. When he does, however, he adds, with considerably less enthusiasm, “{Oh, it’s you.}” Hua Tian-shin, still in her prim work clothes, strides up the counter and fixes him with a cold glare. “{Where is Tsai-hong?}” "{How should I know?!}" He leans back away from the counter, raising his hands as if to ward off a physical attack. Tian-shin grits her teeth. “{So you knew he was gone? Hua Tian-yi, you are a pathetic excuse for a brother. I should not have to find this out from a stranger.}” “{Baba told me not to discuss it with anyone.}" Tian-yi looks down at his textbook and thumbs the edges of his note tabs. "{Ask /him/. He's the one who had been going to the rehab place.}” "{Because /he told us/ Tsai-hong didn't want any other visitors!}" Tian-shin reaches across the counter and slams the book shut. "{Do you believe that?}" "{Well, yes, but now that you put it that way...}" Tian-yi frowns and chews on his lower lip. Tian-shin takes a step back and runs a hand over her glossy hair, pulled back into a neat bun. She makes for the door, then stops. "{How long has he been missing?}" “{He's not /missing/. He probably just checked himself out because he was going through withdrawal.}” Tian-shin wheels back to face him. "{How. Long.}" "{I found out last week.}" Tian-yi subsides into his seat. "{You know what he's like when he doesn't want to be found.}" But his sister is already out the door, reaching into her purse for her phone. Her hands shake as she flicks through the contact list and dials Melinda Chylds. When the phone rings, Mel picks up, her voice still polished for work. "Hello, Melinda speaking." Tian-shin stops at the bustling corner of Canal Street, scanning the crowd. "Hello. It's Hua Tian-shin, Tag's sister. He's gone missing from the facility. I was wondering if you might have seen him..." "Oh, Hi, Tian-shin." Melinda's tone tightens a little in her throat. The noise around her dies down a little as she closes the door to her office. "Seen Tag? Hm. No. Not since the last time I saw you." She doesn't sound sure at all though. Tian-shin's reply comes after several seconds of silence. Every word carries an incredulous ascending tone. "Wait, they let you see him?" She does not notice that the signal has changed until the other pedestrians brush past her into the crosswalk. "I went the following morning that they denied my request to visit out of hand. Was he alright?" "He's fine," Mel replies evenly, a definite feeling of confidence in her tone. That waivers when she admits, "I may have told them that I was a doctor and a friend of the family. The staff called it in, so I guess it was fine." Tian-shin jogs the last few steps to the curb. "Do you mean..." She looks around again. "That is...good! I mean, not that he left before his treatment was complete, but at least he is safe. I would love to see him, but I should first reassure our parents that he is well." "Tian-shin, he was more than done with his treatment." Mel replies flatly. "I'm pretty sure your dad was keeping him in there because he didn't trust him." The frown is evident in her voice. "If you can, I'd just stay away from the whole subject with your parents." "Our father is strict, maybe even harsh," says Tian-shin, "but I cannot believe he would do such a thing! In any case, surely the staff would not allow it. Maybe he just /felt/ pressured into staying. Father can be very...persuasive." She turns the corner onto her street, glancing over one shoulder, then the other. "Still...I will keep confidence if that is my brother's wish." "I am not going to tell you what to think of your father, Tian-shin, but what I remember of the rehab facility left me very little confidence in his motivations." Melinda rubs at her temples, her voice faltering. "They kept him blindfolded." Tian-shin stops at the door to her apartment building and, fumbling for the keys, drops them. "What does that even...ah, to keep him from /painting/, I suppose?" When she stoops to retrieve the keys, she catches a glimpse of someone lingering in her peripheral vision. "Hold on a moment, please." She drops the phone into her purse so she can wrestle the old steel door open. Slipping through it, she sees no one suspicious on the street behind her. The door clangs shut loudly enough to register on the line. Tian-shin picks the phone back up as she ascends the stairs. "Sorry. I don't see why they should bother, unless they had him /restrained/..." She falls silent. "I cannot...there must be some other explanation." Her left hand slides over the steel railing as she climbs, and in its wake the metal visible beneath the peeling paint turns to rust. "I will speak to our father and /demand/ an explanation." Melinda is quiet while Tian-shin is struggling with the big, metal door. When she picks up once more, she continues. "Guards said he was lashing out - trying to blind them. Think about how angry Tag would be to threaten violence on anyone." There's a pause, Melinda's chair squeaking as she turns in her seat. "Just... be careful, Tian-shin. You've already noticed some inconsistencies with this whole situation. It may get worse if you confront him." "He's never been violent," Tian-shin says, her voice quiet and brittle. "Maybe it was the withdrawal, or else they lied to cover up...something they've done to him." She stops at her door, keys jangling softly in her hand. "Inconsistencies. Yes, I...I will be cautious, but I must get to the bottom of this. Thank you for looking out for him. Goodbye." "Good bye, Tian-shin. Take care - and let me know if you need anything." Mel offers in way of a farewell. "Thank you." Tian-shin terminates the call as she unlocks the door to her apartment. She closes the door behind her and heads for the kitchen, unbuttoning her blouse as she goes. "{Who were you talking to, Shin-shin?}" Hua Yong's voice sounds more weary than angry, but it still rivets her to one spot. "{Turn around.}" She obeys, pivoting to face her father."{You know where we can find your sister.}" Tian-shin trembles, clutching the strap of her purse. "{I don't have a sister.}" Her reply is barely audible. "{Please leave him alone, Baba. He has people who understand and care for him.}" "{/They/ are not his family,}" Hua Yong says. "{Come to me, and give me your mobile phone.}"