Chapter 6 - A Kidnapping
A week has gone
by since the engagement party for Quatre and Sarit. Life for the Gundam pilots at the Winner estate was relatively
easy. The only difference was in the
way Duo and Hilde acted. They seemed
more at peace and happy with each other.
The others had a feeling they knew why, but no one mentioned it.
Quatre spent more
and more time with Sarit than with his friends. Understandable, since he was to spend the rest of his life with
her as her husband. He was determined
to get to know her as well as possible.
Moreover, for her to get to know him.
He couldn't stand
the thought of marrying someone he didn't even know. Since the night of the party when they had decided to become
friends, the friendship that they longed for seemed to elude them. Quatre's uncle seemed determined to keep
them apart.
It was as if now
that the marriage was assured, he wanted to keep Quatre isolated from
everyone. Including his intended.
Quatre rebelled
at this, however. During the evening,
he would always take a few hours to spend with Sarit. They would talk about many things. Their lives. Their
family. Their dreams.
Quatre was
shocked to hear that her mother had died having her. The same happened to his mother.
They had so much in common it was uncanny.
When Quatre
wasn't spending time with his uncle or Sarit, he took his friends
sightseeing. There were many wonders on
L4 colony that were not available anywhere else. There were caverns underneath the main city. These caverns, reminiscent of the Carlsbad
Caverns on Earth, were the wonder of the L4 colony.
Quatre took all
of his friends their one weekend. On a
whim, Sarit decided to journey with them.
The entrance to
the cavern was dark and foreboding.
Long, sharp stalactites and stalagmites covered the entrance, giving it
the appearance of a gaping mouth ready to devour any who enter. Pulling a small
lantern out of the supplies Heero had insisted on bringing, Quatre approached
the entrance.
Upon seeing the
mouth of the cave, Sarit exclaimed in alarm and clung to Quatre's arm in
fear. Quatre smiled at her
reassuringly. Trowa watched them enter
the cave together. His expression
darkened. What was it about this girl that
set his teeth on edge? Why did he
dislike her so? Was it all because of
Quatre?
Turning his mind
away from such troubling thoughts, he followed Quatre and Sarit into the
cave. Duo and Hilde, hand in hand,
followed. Wufei and Heero brought up
the rear.
The last of the
light from Quatre's lantern was swallowed up by the darkness of the
cavern. Observing the companions, the
dark figure entered unnoticed.
* * * * *
Watching Quatre
and his friends depart, Safir smiled.
His plans were coming together nicely.
The boy was learning the ins and outs of the company business. Returning to his desk, Safir turned to the
massive pile of paperwork.
Some moments
later, Safir was interrupted by his secretary.
"Mr. Winner,
General Kresch is here to see you."
Kresch? What did that blowhard want now? "Fine.
Let him in."
Safir put his pen
on the desk when General Kresch walked in.
The general was a tall, swarthy man in his mid-fifties. The general had been a thorn in his side for
a very long time. Once his plans were
successful, he would be free to eliminate such obstacles.
For the moment,
however, he needed this blowhard.
Planting a smile
on his face, Safir greeted Kresch.
"General! I am
honored. Please, have a seat and tell
me what can I do for you?"
Kresch smiled as
he took the same seat Quatre had during his meeting with his uncle. "I thank you, Mr. Winner. There are grave matters that we must
discuss."
Safir quirked an
eyebrow upwards in curiosity.
"Really? What
matters?"
"I
understand your nephew has returned to us."
Glaring at the
general, Safir replied. "I didn't
realize the comings and goings of my nephew were of interest to the
military."
Kresch smiled
again. "Of course they are! Your nephew was one of the five Gundam
Pilots instrumental in the end of the last war. Without him, I daresay things would be quite different. Unlike the rest of the Winner family."
Keeping his
expression bland, Safir ignored the insult.
"What did you want to discuss?"
The general was
silent for a moment. Then...
"I was
thinking of our agreement. They boy
will be of age in three years and if he ever finds out..."
"He won't
find out, Kresch. The boy is a
pawn. He always has been. Do not try my patience in this matter."
"You can't
control everything he does, Safir.
Especially on Earth. What do you
plan on doing when he returns?"
Safir gave him a
steely glare. "That is my
problem. Not yours. I will deal with it in my own way."
Kresch took a
deep breath. "Alright. But what, by Allah, were you thinking when
you arranged this marriage? The last
thing we need is for the boy to start producing heirs."
Safir shook his
head. The military mind was so closed
minded. "You needn't worry about
that. We are quite safe."
"Safe?! How?!"
Safir smiled. "Oh, didn't you know? Quatre is quite taken with one of his fellow
pilots. Quite taken, if you get my
meaning."
Kresch just
stared. "You mean he's gay?"
Safir just
smiled.
They spoke of
other matters, but Kresch was still troubled when he left. Walking down the corridor, he stopped in a
deserted alcove. Taking out a small
transmitter, he activated it. He then
put it away and breathed a sigh of relief.
No matter what Safir said, he didn't trust that Winner brat.
Eliminating him
was the only solution.
* * * * *
The caverns were
beautiful. More than that, they took a person's breath away. Sarit stared in wonder at a large spike of
crystalline rock jutting out of a wall.
It sparkled and shimmered when the light from Quatre's lamp hit it.
She closed her
eyes. She couldn't bear to look at such
beauty for long. It reminded her of her
mother. She missed her terribly. A tear slid down her cheek.
Quatre looked
about him. The caverns hadn't
changed. They were still breathtakingly
beautiful. Noticing a particularly
lovely set of rock formations, he turns to Sarit to point them out to her. He looks closely at her. Something seems to be glistening on her
cheek.
Realizing the
glistening are tears, he touches her cheek with concern. "Are you alright?"
Sarit blinks and
comes back to herself. Momentarily lost
in her memories, she realized Quatre is looking at her with concern.
Brushing her
tears away, she smiles at Quatre.
"I'm fine. Just some old
memories resurfacing."
Not wanting to
pry, Quatre just nods. Then he
grins. He takes her hand in his and
leads her to an open crevice in the wall.
"Come on. I want to show
you something."
Laughing, she
follows him.
* * * * *
Trowa looked
around the caverns in silent admiration.
They were very beautiful. No
wonder Quatre likes to come here. It's
beautiful, Trowa thought. At the
thought of his friend, his expression darkened. What were these feelings he had?
Why did he hate the sight of that girl, Sarit? Was it because of all the time she monopolized from Quatre? Time Quatre used to spend with Trowa?
What was he
thinking? Quatre was his friend. His best friend. With his current thoughts, you would think he was in love...
Trowa snapped out
of his thoughts abruptly. Was that the
reason? Am I in love with Quatre?
Pulling himself
together, Trowa looks around for Quatre.
They needed to talk. Not finding
him,
Trowa turns to
the others.
"Have any of
you seen Quatre? He's not here."
The others look
around, and sure enough, Quatre is missing.
As is Sarit.
Noticing the
other absent party, Duo chuckled.
"Q-man isn't the only one gone."
Trowa looks at
him quizzically.
Duo grinned. "Sarit's gone too. I bet they left to have a little
"interlude" together."
Trowa's
expression became cold at the thought.
Noticing his expression, Hilde jabbed her boyfriend in the ribs. He yelped.
"Shut up,
you braided baka. You know they don't
feel that way about each other."
"Ah,
Hilde..."
Heero glares at
Duo. "Hilde's right. It's not safe for Quatre to go off
alone. Has everyone forgotten the
attack on us a couple of weeks ago? I
haven't."
"You think
there was something more to it?"
Wufei asked.
Heero
nodded. "They had enough
reinforcements to take care of us. All
of us. Yet, the main force concentrated
on Quatre. Why? Until they attacked him, he posed no
threat. Tactically, they should have
came at us in full force."
The implications
of Heero's statement stun everyone.
Concern is etched on their faces.
They separate; realizing it may be too late. They had to find their friend.
* * * * *
Squeezing through
the crevice, Sarit stopped in wonder.
She was in a wonderland.
Beautiful figurines lined a crystalline wall. A couple of wooden stools sat on the floor. Twinkling lights lined the walls, giving off
a soft light. A small pond of ice clear
water rested in a corner.
All of the
tension from the past couple of weeks seemed to melt away. She breathed in a fresh lung full of air.
Quatre smiled at
her reaction. "You seem to like my
hideaway."
"Hideaway?"
she asked.
Quatre
nodded. He gestured to the small, but
cozy, room. "I used to come here
as a child. To get away from everyone
and everything. When I got a little
older, I decorated it."
Sarit
smiled. "It's beautiful."
That's when Sarit
made the mistake of looking into his eyes.
She never
realized before how large they were.
They were like large orbs of glass.
The color was more of a dark sea green than turquoise. She found herself getting lost within their
depths.
Quatre looked at
Sarit with concern. What was wrong with
her? She was staring at him so
deeply. Then he made the mistake of
gazing into her eyes. They were a deep
blue, as deep as the sky after a rainstorm.
He could see her very soul in those eyes. They cried out for warmth, comfort and love.
Sarit closes her
eyes in anticipation of the kiss she knows is coming.
Just before their
lips met for the first time, Quatre hears a noise. It wasn't a loud noise, but they were so isolated that there
shouldn't have been anything to disturb them.
Lifting his head, he scans the area.
Nothing.
Then he sees a
slight shadow in a corner of the cavern.
Expecting danger, he thrusts Sarit behind him.
Realizing his
cover is blown, the intruder attacks.
* *
* * *
Trowa ran when he
heard the screaming.
He had been
searching in the south end of the cavern.
Upon hearing the screaming, he turned and ran to the west end, where the
sounds were coming from.
Apparently, Heero
had beaten him to it. Heero had his gun
drawn and was edging toward a small crevice in the rock wall. Moving closer to the opening, Heero motioned
Trowa to take the other side.
With a curt nod,
Trowa positioned himself. A second
scream sounded, and Heero and Trowa moved in.
* *
* * *
Sarit was
terrified.
At the sight of
the intruder, she let out a piercing scream.
Quatre sidestepped the assassin as he attacked. Using the lamp he still held, he smashed the
knife out of the assassin's hand.
Undaunted the man
reached into his jacket and pulled a gun.
Aiming it at Quatre, he prepared to fire.
Seeing the gun,
Quatre panicked. What am I going to
do? I don't have a weapon! When the gun went off, Quatre, looking for
cover, stumbled into Sarit.
Sarit was still
ridged with terror. Upon feeling
Quatre's body hit hers, she collapsed against him. Catching her, he shifted slightly to accommodate her extra
weight.
That shift saved
Quatre's life. Seeing his prey about to
escape, the assassin fired the gun. If
Quatre hadn't moved slightly, the bullet would have pierced his heart. Instead, the bullet grazed his upper arm and
lodged itself deep in the panel behind Quatre.
The impact sent
sparks everywhere. Then, all at once,
the lights failed.
Damn! He must
of hit the power generator! Quatre was desperate now. He couldn't see where the assassin or Sarit
were. Hell, he didn't even know where
he was!
Wanting to end
this quickly, the assassin lunged in the direction Quatre was when the lights
went out. He encountered a body ridged
with fear. It screamed. Taking the butt end of the gun, he hit the
person on the head. They slumped in
unconsciousness.
Slinging the body
over his shoulder, he made his escape.
* *
* * *
When they heard
the third scream, Heero and Trowa advanced.
Seeing only darkness, Trowa brought out his own lamp. Igniting it, he stepped to the side,
allowing Heero a clean shot if necessary.
It wasn't. The only one in the room was Quatre. Trowa and Heero advanced cautiously,
expecting trouble. None came. Quatre was alone.
But hurt. His arm was grazed and blood flowed
freely. Behind him, a panel sputtered
an occasional spark. While Heero
surveyed the area, Trowa knelt beside Quatre.
"What happened?"
Quatre looked up
at his friend. Fear and anguish plainly
cover his features. "I failed to
protect her."
"Failed? Her?
Who, Sarit? Where is
she?" Trowa asked with growing
alarm.
Quatre
nodded. 'I brought her here so we could
talk. Then a strange man arrived. He tried to kill me!"
Heero nodded,
hearing the last statement as he approached.
"It was an assassin. A very
sloppy one. He left a clear trial. Let's get you back and your arm bandaged
up. Then we can decide what to
do."
"No! We have to go after her right
NOW!" Quatre demanded.
Trowa and Heero
are taken aback at Quatre's vehemence.
Trowa approaches and puts his arm around Quatre's shoulders.
"Quatre,
think for a moment. You are
injured. We do not know the extent that
this assassination plot has gone. If we
leave now, we may be falling into a trap.
You know this. Let us go and
bandage your wounds. Then we will
rescue Sarit."
Quatre sees the
sincerity in Trowa's eyes. He
nods. "I know your right. But I feel awful. She's my friend and she could be hurt because of me."
Heero gripped
Quatre's arm. "You are not to
blame. We will help. Sarit will be fine."
Quatre nods as
Trowa leads him out. Heero gathers Duo,
Hilde and Wufei. The friends leave the
caverns, returning to the Winner Estate.
Walking beside
Quatre, Trowa was silent. What had
happened to make Quatre so desperate in his desire to rescue his
betrothal? Did he have feelings for
her?
Unable to keep
his troubling thoughts to himself, he turns to Quatre. "You like her, don't you."
Quatre turns to
Trowa in surprise. Was that jealousy he
heard in his friend's voice? No,
certainly not. Quatre muses. "Of course I like her. She's my friend."
Trowa gives
Quatre a piercing stare. "Only a
friend?"
Quatre stares at
Trowa in shock. He never was so
forward! Thinking of his question, he
gives a slight blush and turns away.
"I don't
know, Trowa. I really don't know."
