Act 3: Little Sister Lost

It was Claire who finally responded to Vince’s sudden question about Kate. “She had a hard time in High School,” Claire began. “She was bullied. The other teens teased her, told her that you left because she was a disappointment, and you didn’t love her.”

Vince grimaced at that revelation. He began to object but Claire raised a hand to stop him. “She was a real soldier and made it to graduation,” Claire was beaming at Kate’s accomplishments, but suddenly sobered.

“She found a good job and was doing well until five years ago,” Claire sighed and looked over at Helen who was staring at them both with noodles hanging out of her mouth. She looked silly.

“Swallow your food, Helen,” Claire ordered. Helen slurped her noodles into her mouth, chewed then stuck her tongue out at Claire. “In any case, five years ago she just vanished, no one knew where she’d gone.”

Vince was getting angrier as she continued. But Claire got up and walked to the refrigerator. Against all decency, Vince couldn’t help but stare at her as she walked. The way her ass swayed and her cheeks were exposed in her shorts was distracting.

Helen had noticed and giggled, then began banging on the table. She was drumming out a rhythm, “Boom! Chaka-laka Boom!” Vince glared at her and Claire just looked confused. She set a beer down in front of Vince and went back to her seat.

We contacted the police, but were told that since she was an adult, there was nothing they could do,” she sighed heavily. “They said, she was an adult and as long as no crime had been committed all they could do was take a report about a missing person.”

Claire went on to explain that when she came back a year later, he refused to say where she’d gone or what she did. Vince was becoming visibly troubled by this information and Helen exacerbated the situation by throwing in her two cents.

“My friend Mary told me that she probably went to Japan to look for you,” That revelation shocked both Vince and Claire.

“Do you have a more recent picture of her?” Vince asked. “She’s fifteen in the one I have,” he admitted. Claire swiped through something on her phone then tapped a few times and Vince received a text message.

When he opened the message Vince saw a picture of a girl he instantly recognized as Kate. Though she was taller and slimmer than he remembered and her hair was long and jet black. She was wearing a bikini that showed off her toned body and her massive breasts.

Vince visibly flinched. Claire said. “She became a bit wild after her twentieth birthday,” Vince was tapping something out on his phone, so Claire went on.

“Kate spent about six months running with some of the less savory types around the valley, and then one day...” Claire paused and sighed heavily. “One day she did what you did. “She said goodbye and stormed out without another word.”

When Vince finished typing he looked up at Claire. She stared at him, anger building in her eyes. “Have you even been listening?” she growled. Vince nodded.

“Every word,” he assured her. “I’ve contacted my people in Tokyo, if she’s ever been in Japan, they’ll find her and get back to me,” Shocked faces stared back at Vince. Helen was the first to ask the question.

“Umm, what exactly do you do in Japan, Vinny?” He looked at Claire who was nodding. Had he never told them about his company? Well, better late than never, he supposed.

He explained that the startup company he’d opened ten years ago began as an IoT provider, selling smart coffee pots, voice assistants, and other smart home products. Eventually, there was a need for live support, so he branched into IT and database management services.

“Right now, our smart devices are used across Japan not only in homes but in businesses,” Then he grinned. That coupled with the Government’s full-time video surveillance...” he spread his arms wide and shrugged.

“If she’s gone to Japan, we’ll find out,” he dropped his hands and sighed. “Though it may take a few days,” at that both Claire and Helen face-palmed.

Both Claire and Helen told Vince they were making it an early night. While neither worked or went to school over the weekend, Helen had clubs and graduation practice. Vince grabbed another beer and went out back to the patio.

It felt like hours that he sat, staring up at the full moon through the L.A. haze. He’d only taken a few sips of his beer and it was getting warm. He took a large swallow and then poured the rest into the planter next to him.

Vince was beginning to feel guilty about many things, but mostly about Kate. Wherever she was, she was there without family to support her. She couldn’t even get money from the funds he’d been sending. Claire would have given her whatever she needed. He was sure.