::Remember Me::
Chapter Twenty-Five
::Remember Me::
"Catherine!" Sasha exclaimed, her hands raised, backing away from the other woman. "What are you doing here? How did you find me?"
"Shut up!" The red-head hissed, thrusting her knife in Sasha's face, "Get in there; away from the window!"
Swallowing her nerves, the aerialist complied, allowing the dangerous woman into the room. "You didn't answer my question." She glared.
"Where is he?"
"Who?" Sasha antagonized.
"Trowa!?"
"Trowa Barton died when he had his memories erased." She sneered, "You and Relena made sure of that!"
"I don't know how you did it, but he remembered!"
"You give me too much credit." Sasha taunted, shifting to the left, making her assailant circle her, to the point, where Catherine was between her and the bathroom.
The bathroom, where her Gundam Pilot Brother was hidden.
She smirked.
Catherine became infuriated at the smugness the girl was displaying. Shrieking she launched herself at her target.
::Remember Me::
Quatre crept to the partially closed door and peered through the crack at the hinge; what he saw made his blood run cold.
Silently, he cursed his sister's antagonistic comments; didn't she have any sense of self-preservation?
Then he shared his sister's smirk, when he saw that she was manipulating the irate woman to move within his reach.
Slipping out the door, and behind Catherine, he grabbed her just as she lunged at her intended victim. Using his body weight, he swung her face-first into the nearest wall. He then pressed into her, pinning her, "Sasha! Get the knife!"
His sister rushed forward, trying to pry the blade from clamped fist.
The woman was stronger than he expected and it was all he could do to keep her subdued, especially, once she figured out who had interfered with her intended homicide, "YOU!" She shrieked, pushing against the wall, forcing him off balance. She whirled around, slashing at the pregnant girl.
Sasha flailed backwards, the blade slicing at her shirt across her stomach.
A cold chill chased down her spine; her arms crossed across her abdomen defensively, and she scrambled away from the fight.
Quatre fell hard; his breath knocked from him. He wasn't up to this physically, but he had to defend his sister! He glared up at the crazed woman.
Catherine looked wildly between the two Winners, she seemed torn on who she wanted to hurt more. Coming to a conclusion, she pulled a gun from her waistband and aimed it at Sasha. "This is all your fault!"
:: Remember Me::
Trowa pulled the newly borrowed sedan into the shadowed parking space, closest to the road; he wanted an easy out, should things get dicey. He had a bad feeling that left a weight in his stomach. Putting the vehicle into park, he surveyed the area.
His eyes narrowed dangerously when he noticed a large man huddled in, what he recognized to be Catherine's Mini Cooper. Scanning the area, he didn't see his guardian; that meant she was inside the hotel room.
Getting out of the car, he resisted the urge to slam the door in his anger. Casually strolling over to the Mini, he leaned against the passenger side window and knocked on the glass.
The man inside looked up, startled. His eyes grew huge as he hastily rolled down his window. "You have to get in there!" The Ringmaster urged. "She's crazy! She's going to Kill Sasha!"
Trowa's glare became deadly, as he turned towards the hotel. "And you're just sitting here, allowing her to do so."
The older man's shoulder's slumped in shame.
Disgusted, the banged teen pushed open the door. "Catherine!"
::Remember Me::
"I'm looking for transport to L2." Hiiro spoke in a hushed tone, as to not be overheard, or draw attention. He tugged on the drawstring to his hoodie and hefted the pack he carried on his shoulder. "Word is, you might be able to help?"
The captain looked down at the teenager. The boy was clearly uncomfortable being exposed in the crowded spaceport; he reminded him of another teenager from months ago. Smiling, he nodded, "200 and work?"
Some of the tension eased from the kid's shoulders. "I can do that."
"Good. Name's Harvard, but you can call me Harvey or Captain." He chuckled. "I noticed those…" He pointed to the overhead vid screen that displayed flight times, news feeds and advertisements. Currently, on display was a picture of Gundam Pilot Zero-One. "You may want to stay in your quarters until after take-off." He gestured to one of the men supervising the loading of cargo. "That's Max. If you need anything and can't find me, you can ask him. We leave in 15 minutes."
"Thank you."
::Remember Me::
Phoenix watched from the window of his cabin, as the new passenger boarded. "Hiiro Yui." He mused, "Fate would bring us together again."
::Remember Me::
The gunshot was loud, freezing everyone in the room, as the sound echoed in their ears. Unsure as to where it came from, each person took inventory of their own wellbeing.
Catherine staggered, her grasp on her weapons loosening, allowing them to fall to the ground; Quatre snatched up the gun, and aimed it at her, as he cautiously got up from the floor.
She seemed dazed, confused and stunned as she lifted her fingers to the bleeding hole in her chest. Shaking, she lifted her eyes to meet those of the Ringmaster, who held a gun pointed at her. "Wha-" She tried to speak, but it came out gurgled as her lungs filled with blood; the crimson liquid dribbled from her mouth. Gasping painfully for air, she sank to the floor; it seemed, to her, as if she were moving in slow motion, though her decent did not appear as lethargic, nor graceful to those who watched her.
Trowa reached out and took the weapon from the older man's grip; the Ringmaster was trembling and could not take his eyes off of his victim.
"Quatre?" Trowa asked, not taking his eyes off of the disturbed man.
"Not yet…" The blonde responded, as he watched the light leave the woman's eyes and she expelled her final, choked, breath of air. "Clear." And he lowered his purloined gun.
"Status." Trowa demanded.
"Unhurt." Quatre replied, moving around the body to check on his sister, "Sasha?"
Terrified, she met her brother's concerned gaze; she was trying not to cry. With a sigh, he knelt beside her and pulled her into his arms. "It's okay."
"Sh-she really tried to kill me!"
"She can't hurt you anymore."
"I'm going to throw up." She whimpered, covering her mouth as it filled with bile. Quatre reached over and snagged the wastebasket, and allowed her to purge her system of everything she had consumed that morning.
In the distance, sirens filled the air, getting closer with every second.
"We can't stay here." Trowa pointed out.
"Y-you go… I-I'll stay…" The Ringmaster nodded slowly. He could not stop watching the woman's lifeless body.
"You'll be arrested." The pilot argued.
"I deserve to be."
"You saved us."
"You need a head start."
"What will you tell them?" Quatre wondered, looking around the disheveled room; it was obvious that the fight had been between multiple people. "How on earth will you explain this?"
"I'll… make something up… You need to go!" The Man snapped out of his stupor. "Or none of this will matter!"
Urging Sasha to her feet, the pilots raced around the room gathering their supplies and belongings. The sirens were at the end of the street when they rushed out into the stolen car.
"We won't make it through, if they set up a barricade." Quatre reminded, throwing what he could into the back seat.
"Cat, hide in the trunk." Trowa ordered. "No one saw you come in, no one should see you leave."
Reluctantly, the blonde complied and was shut into the darkness of the vehicle.
Sasha climbed into the front seat, while the banged teenager took the driver's. "Hang on, this might get interesting."
"Interesting!?" The girl shook her head, trying to regain her cool composure. "That's putting it lightly, Tro."
"Pretend you're asleep." He ordered, pulling out of the back of the parking lot onto the main road, just moments before the police and ambulance pulled around the corner and into the front lot and blocked the entrance.
Sasha closed her eyes and relaxed into the seat.
Trowa pulled up to the parking lot and leaned out, frowning at the scene.
"You're going to have to move along." A policeman ordered in French.
"What's going on?" Trowa responded in kind, "Is it possible to get a room? We've been traveling all day and my girlfriend isn't feeling well."
"Sorry, but there was a shooting. It's not safe right now."
"That's scary." The teenager frowned once more, "Definitely do not want to be here, then… Are there any other motels around, you could suggest?"
"Ummm." The man thought for a moment. "There isn't one in this town, but if you go 25 miles north, there are three."
"Thank you, Sir." Trowa nodded, backing his vehicle away from the blockade.
"Slick." Sasha murmured as he drove away.