1.1 Chapter Six: Oh, What a Tangled Web We Weave
The tall man watched over his trainees as the practiced target shooting on the field. "Good." He called. "Peter, straighten up. If you don't shoot with good back alignment you'll miss every time." He eyed every one of the shots. All fifteen hit dead on. "Excellent. One more round. Headshots only. Reload and shoot on my word."
A dark figure strode gracefully up beside him. "How are they coming along?"
"Very well. These are as good as the last one's I sent you. They're all a perfect aim." The tall man replied.
"Good. Very good. Please, Mr. Barton, give the word."
"Fire!" he called.
Fifteen shots rang out, and fifteen dummy heads rolled.
The dark man let a smile curl at his lips. "Beautifully done, Mr. Barton. I knew I could count on you. All of the cadets come out perfect, and you've trained over half the commander's army."
Trowa Barton shrugged. "It is my pleasure to serve her. My time is yours."
"I'll report this to the Lady. You'll be in for a commendation soon. It would be an honor to serve with you at the palace headquarters." The man said.
"I like training them. I know they'll come out alive if they follow my training." Trowa said seriously.
"Even against gundam pilots?" the man asked a teasing touch to his tone.
"Especially against gundam pilots. What is a gundam pilot without a gundam, anyway? They were all destroyed." Trowa said.
"Touché, Mr. Barton, touché. I'll go make that report. I'll be seeing you." The man said. He smiled that crooked smile one more time, and departed.
Trowa returned his focus to his trainees. "Good. You passed the General's inspection with flying colors. Let's call it a day. We'll practice night targets after midnight tonight, so rest up. Dismissed."
Fifteen loyal voices echoed across the field. "Yessir!"
The young doctor and part time teacher walked brusquely into the basement of the hospital. She flashed her badge at the security booth.
"Go on in, Doc." The guard said.
She moved inside pushed open a door that said "Records".
Inside the room were literally thousands of files. Near the front was a computer desk, complete with updated computer. A fellow doctor came in.
"Oh, Doctor Estes, I presume." She said amiably. "What brings you here to the grim world of the mortuary?"
"Hello, Collins. How are you?" Anna replied.
"Good and cold, as usual. And you?" Collins responded.
"Dressed, stressed and ready to go." She said dryly.
"Ah, your motto from clinical. Back to haunt you, eh? Can I be of help?" Collins asked.
"Actually, if you're not busy, could you look up a patient for me?" Anna said.
Collins shrugged. "No problem. My patients don't exactly have pressing matters. What's the name?"
"Chang, Wufei. He came in here four months ago. Died, supposedly from L accident injuries. I need to know the time of death, and what he really died from." Anna said with a sigh.
Collins sat at the computer. "No problem. Was he cute?"
"Not when he came in. He was very handsome before."
"Yeah, getting hit with a train will do that to you. I remember hearing about that guy. Don't remember if I did the autopsy on him or not. I'll check. You a close, personal friend of his?" Collins asked. She said the last with a very suggestive tone.
"Maybe, none of your business, girl. I'm going to see if his personal belongings are still here on file." The brown-haired girl said.
"Kay."
The file room fell silent as both women got to work on their individual tasks. Anna went over both the ch's and the wu's, but no certificate of death for Chang Wufei could be found. "Darn it." She muttered.
"Yo! Girl, have I got news for you. Get over here." Collins called.
Anna made her way to the computer desk. "What is it?"
"Chang Wufei. Black hair, black eyes, late twenties, about five feet eleven inches, one hundred and sixteen pounds…any of that sound familiar to you?" Collins asked.
"The name, the hair and eye color, and the age match. It's him. When and how did he die?" Anna asked, bracing herself.
"Get this, he didn't." Collins said with glee.
"What?!? I saw him! I was the only medical person on site!" Anna exclaimed.
"You only assumed he died, right? They didn't call you with a follow- up I'm sure. He checked out with a clean bill of health a month and a half after coming in. He's out there somewhere." Collins informed the shocked girl. "You okay?"
"No, no I'm not okay! My dead husbands back from the grave, I watch another of my closest friends die without knowing it, and he's alive, my best friends husband is alive after assumedly being dead for ten years, and my past is coming back and slapping me repeatedly in the face! I am anything but okay!" She cried in frustration.
Meg Collins stared at her blankly for a moment. "Wow. Maybe we should switch jobs."
Anna groaned and sank into a chair. "Oh, please. That's all I need. I'm surrounded by dead people enough as it is."
Meg laughed. "Yeah, but I get paid for it."
The phone on the desk rang. Collins picked it up. "Yeah, no, I don't think anyone's down here by that name. Not alive, anyway. Let me check. Doctor Estes is down here, she might know." Meg put her hand over the receiver. "A guy with long hair is up at registration asking for a Anna Maxwell. Know him?"
She sighed. "Yeah. I do. Tell him she'll be right up."
Meg relayed the information. "What's that about?" she asked.
Anna smiled weakly. "Time to face the music I composed."
Chase's eyes fluttered open when Heero set her down. "Anou, Heero- chan, what time is it?"
"Nearly nine."
Chase nodded drowsily. "Okay. Is Anna back yet?"
"No."
Chase opened her mouth to speak again, but was cut off by the loud ringing of the phone. She reached over from her bed and picked it up. "Hello?"
"Hello. I'm looking for Chase, Anna, or Heero…" the voice on the other end of the line said.
Chase narrowed her eyes. "This is Chase."
Pause.
"Chase-chan? Moshi moshi, Chase-chan!"
That voice… So oddly familiar…
"Quatre?"
"Yes. Hello! I was hoping to ketch you there. I hope I didn't just ruin a surprise."
"No, Quatre, I knew Heero was here. He came walking through my door a couple hours ago." She paused, realization hitting her. "QUATRE?! What the heck are you doing here?!"
There was a chuckled from the other end. "Something Anna didn't tell you. I suppose you've heard of Lucky Vincent?"
"Yes. I've got one of his laptops to do my art on."
Quatre chuckled again. "That would be me, Chase-chan."
There was a long whistle from the former female pilot. "I know one of the most influential men on the planet…"
"Chase, three plane tickets should be arriving soon. I need for you, Anna, and Heero to come here to New York."
"What about Duo?"
"Duo's there?" He sounded shocked.
"Yup. Came crashing my party the other night."
"Then I'll have it arranged for an other ticket. Anyway, I need you all in New York by tomorrow night. I have news something big may be going down. There's a party that the company is having that I've got as a cover to meet with all of you. Formal wear, Chase-chan. I'm afraid you'll have to wear a dress."
The young artist sighed in annoyance. "I'm sure I can dig up something, Quatre-kun. What time is our flight?"
"It leaves around ten o'clock tomorrow morning. Tell Anna I'm sorry she's been running all over the country."
"Will do. Ja ne."
"Ja ne."
She hung up the phone and received a look from Heero. "We're going to New York, boyo."
Meg dragged Anna along the hallway of the hospital's ground floor, where registration was. Anna tugged harder and harder the closer they got to the front desk.
"What is the matter with you, Estes? You said he was attractive!" Collins insisted.
"Did I mention he was my dead husband back from the grave like Lazarus?" Anna whimpered.
"YOU'RE MARRIED?!?" Collins came to an abrupt halt.
"Shush!" Anna hissed. "Yes. No. Well, sort of."
Collins almost laughed. "Six years with you in med school and you kept a husband under your hat. No wonder you never dated."
She glared at her. "It's a little more complicated than that."
"Like what?" Meg asked exasperatedly. "You love him?"
"Of course I do."
"He loves you?"
"I'm assuming so."
"What's your problem, girl?" Collins exclaimed.
"I haven't seen him in ten years." Anna said flatly.
"You got married at FIFTEEN?!?"
"No, Meg. We were seventeen." Anna sighed.
Meg stared at her. "I know I was bad at math, but wouldn't that make you twenty-seven?"
Anna groaned. "Like I said, it's a little more complicated than it's worth."
"You are twenty-five, aren't you?" Meg asked.
"Yes, Collins, I'm twenty-five. I don't have time to explain."
"Oookay, whatever. I'm going to go get a camera for this reunion, and you go around that corner and see him! I bet he's dying to see you again." She took off down the hall.
"That was a very bad use of wording!" she called after the woman.
Anna prepared herself to go around the corner and face Duo. Her cell phone rang.
"Maxwell. NO! No, I'm not, I'm Gabi Estes and I live on Dearborn Court."
"Anna? It's Quatre…" the voice filtered over the line.
"Oh, Quatre, I don't know what I am anymore." Anna said dejectedly.
Quatre laughed gently. "I wouldn't worry. Follow your heart and your soul and you'll figure it out."
"Yeah, I hope so." Anna sighed.
"I wanted to see if Chase told you_" her phone clicking shut cut him off.
A hand closed over hers and lips pressed firmly against her own. She recoiled in shock, her eyes flying open. "Ohm gosh, Duo…what the heck are you doing?" she murmured.
"Wondering if you missed me." He murmured back.
Her eyes became teary and she threw her arms around his neck, kissing him again. "Yeah, you know, I kind of did." She whispered.
He hugged her to him. "I missed you too. I thought I lost you."
"I thought I lost you too, boyo."
He grinned and held up a perfectly round, gold sphere between his forefinger and his thumb. "I remember there being quite a crowd around the last time I asked. But, will you take this ring back?"
"Could I take you back instead?" she teased.
He slipped the ring back into place. "All yours."
She smiled, tears glistening on her cheeks, and leaned her head on his shoulder.
A camera flash went off behind them.
"Meg!"
The tall man watched over his trainees as the practiced target shooting on the field. "Good." He called. "Peter, straighten up. If you don't shoot with good back alignment you'll miss every time." He eyed every one of the shots. All fifteen hit dead on. "Excellent. One more round. Headshots only. Reload and shoot on my word."
A dark figure strode gracefully up beside him. "How are they coming along?"
"Very well. These are as good as the last one's I sent you. They're all a perfect aim." The tall man replied.
"Good. Very good. Please, Mr. Barton, give the word."
"Fire!" he called.
Fifteen shots rang out, and fifteen dummy heads rolled.
The dark man let a smile curl at his lips. "Beautifully done, Mr. Barton. I knew I could count on you. All of the cadets come out perfect, and you've trained over half the commander's army."
Trowa Barton shrugged. "It is my pleasure to serve her. My time is yours."
"I'll report this to the Lady. You'll be in for a commendation soon. It would be an honor to serve with you at the palace headquarters." The man said.
"I like training them. I know they'll come out alive if they follow my training." Trowa said seriously.
"Even against gundam pilots?" the man asked a teasing touch to his tone.
"Especially against gundam pilots. What is a gundam pilot without a gundam, anyway? They were all destroyed." Trowa said.
"Touché, Mr. Barton, touché. I'll go make that report. I'll be seeing you." The man said. He smiled that crooked smile one more time, and departed.
Trowa returned his focus to his trainees. "Good. You passed the General's inspection with flying colors. Let's call it a day. We'll practice night targets after midnight tonight, so rest up. Dismissed."
Fifteen loyal voices echoed across the field. "Yessir!"
The young doctor and part time teacher walked brusquely into the basement of the hospital. She flashed her badge at the security booth.
"Go on in, Doc." The guard said.
She moved inside pushed open a door that said "Records".
Inside the room were literally thousands of files. Near the front was a computer desk, complete with updated computer. A fellow doctor came in.
"Oh, Doctor Estes, I presume." She said amiably. "What brings you here to the grim world of the mortuary?"
"Hello, Collins. How are you?" Anna replied.
"Good and cold, as usual. And you?" Collins responded.
"Dressed, stressed and ready to go." She said dryly.
"Ah, your motto from clinical. Back to haunt you, eh? Can I be of help?" Collins asked.
"Actually, if you're not busy, could you look up a patient for me?" Anna said.
Collins shrugged. "No problem. My patients don't exactly have pressing matters. What's the name?"
"Chang, Wufei. He came in here four months ago. Died, supposedly from L accident injuries. I need to know the time of death, and what he really died from." Anna said with a sigh.
Collins sat at the computer. "No problem. Was he cute?"
"Not when he came in. He was very handsome before."
"Yeah, getting hit with a train will do that to you. I remember hearing about that guy. Don't remember if I did the autopsy on him or not. I'll check. You a close, personal friend of his?" Collins asked. She said the last with a very suggestive tone.
"Maybe, none of your business, girl. I'm going to see if his personal belongings are still here on file." The brown-haired girl said.
"Kay."
The file room fell silent as both women got to work on their individual tasks. Anna went over both the ch's and the wu's, but no certificate of death for Chang Wufei could be found. "Darn it." She muttered.
"Yo! Girl, have I got news for you. Get over here." Collins called.
Anna made her way to the computer desk. "What is it?"
"Chang Wufei. Black hair, black eyes, late twenties, about five feet eleven inches, one hundred and sixteen pounds…any of that sound familiar to you?" Collins asked.
"The name, the hair and eye color, and the age match. It's him. When and how did he die?" Anna asked, bracing herself.
"Get this, he didn't." Collins said with glee.
"What?!? I saw him! I was the only medical person on site!" Anna exclaimed.
"You only assumed he died, right? They didn't call you with a follow- up I'm sure. He checked out with a clean bill of health a month and a half after coming in. He's out there somewhere." Collins informed the shocked girl. "You okay?"
"No, no I'm not okay! My dead husbands back from the grave, I watch another of my closest friends die without knowing it, and he's alive, my best friends husband is alive after assumedly being dead for ten years, and my past is coming back and slapping me repeatedly in the face! I am anything but okay!" She cried in frustration.
Meg Collins stared at her blankly for a moment. "Wow. Maybe we should switch jobs."
Anna groaned and sank into a chair. "Oh, please. That's all I need. I'm surrounded by dead people enough as it is."
Meg laughed. "Yeah, but I get paid for it."
The phone on the desk rang. Collins picked it up. "Yeah, no, I don't think anyone's down here by that name. Not alive, anyway. Let me check. Doctor Estes is down here, she might know." Meg put her hand over the receiver. "A guy with long hair is up at registration asking for a Anna Maxwell. Know him?"
She sighed. "Yeah. I do. Tell him she'll be right up."
Meg relayed the information. "What's that about?" she asked.
Anna smiled weakly. "Time to face the music I composed."
Chase's eyes fluttered open when Heero set her down. "Anou, Heero- chan, what time is it?"
"Nearly nine."
Chase nodded drowsily. "Okay. Is Anna back yet?"
"No."
Chase opened her mouth to speak again, but was cut off by the loud ringing of the phone. She reached over from her bed and picked it up. "Hello?"
"Hello. I'm looking for Chase, Anna, or Heero…" the voice on the other end of the line said.
Chase narrowed her eyes. "This is Chase."
Pause.
"Chase-chan? Moshi moshi, Chase-chan!"
That voice… So oddly familiar…
"Quatre?"
"Yes. Hello! I was hoping to ketch you there. I hope I didn't just ruin a surprise."
"No, Quatre, I knew Heero was here. He came walking through my door a couple hours ago." She paused, realization hitting her. "QUATRE?! What the heck are you doing here?!"
There was a chuckled from the other end. "Something Anna didn't tell you. I suppose you've heard of Lucky Vincent?"
"Yes. I've got one of his laptops to do my art on."
Quatre chuckled again. "That would be me, Chase-chan."
There was a long whistle from the former female pilot. "I know one of the most influential men on the planet…"
"Chase, three plane tickets should be arriving soon. I need for you, Anna, and Heero to come here to New York."
"What about Duo?"
"Duo's there?" He sounded shocked.
"Yup. Came crashing my party the other night."
"Then I'll have it arranged for an other ticket. Anyway, I need you all in New York by tomorrow night. I have news something big may be going down. There's a party that the company is having that I've got as a cover to meet with all of you. Formal wear, Chase-chan. I'm afraid you'll have to wear a dress."
The young artist sighed in annoyance. "I'm sure I can dig up something, Quatre-kun. What time is our flight?"
"It leaves around ten o'clock tomorrow morning. Tell Anna I'm sorry she's been running all over the country."
"Will do. Ja ne."
"Ja ne."
She hung up the phone and received a look from Heero. "We're going to New York, boyo."
Meg dragged Anna along the hallway of the hospital's ground floor, where registration was. Anna tugged harder and harder the closer they got to the front desk.
"What is the matter with you, Estes? You said he was attractive!" Collins insisted.
"Did I mention he was my dead husband back from the grave like Lazarus?" Anna whimpered.
"YOU'RE MARRIED?!?" Collins came to an abrupt halt.
"Shush!" Anna hissed. "Yes. No. Well, sort of."
Collins almost laughed. "Six years with you in med school and you kept a husband under your hat. No wonder you never dated."
She glared at her. "It's a little more complicated than that."
"Like what?" Meg asked exasperatedly. "You love him?"
"Of course I do."
"He loves you?"
"I'm assuming so."
"What's your problem, girl?" Collins exclaimed.
"I haven't seen him in ten years." Anna said flatly.
"You got married at FIFTEEN?!?"
"No, Meg. We were seventeen." Anna sighed.
Meg stared at her. "I know I was bad at math, but wouldn't that make you twenty-seven?"
Anna groaned. "Like I said, it's a little more complicated than it's worth."
"You are twenty-five, aren't you?" Meg asked.
"Yes, Collins, I'm twenty-five. I don't have time to explain."
"Oookay, whatever. I'm going to go get a camera for this reunion, and you go around that corner and see him! I bet he's dying to see you again." She took off down the hall.
"That was a very bad use of wording!" she called after the woman.
Anna prepared herself to go around the corner and face Duo. Her cell phone rang.
"Maxwell. NO! No, I'm not, I'm Gabi Estes and I live on Dearborn Court."
"Anna? It's Quatre…" the voice filtered over the line.
"Oh, Quatre, I don't know what I am anymore." Anna said dejectedly.
Quatre laughed gently. "I wouldn't worry. Follow your heart and your soul and you'll figure it out."
"Yeah, I hope so." Anna sighed.
"I wanted to see if Chase told you_" her phone clicking shut cut him off.
A hand closed over hers and lips pressed firmly against her own. She recoiled in shock, her eyes flying open. "Ohm gosh, Duo…what the heck are you doing?" she murmured.
"Wondering if you missed me." He murmured back.
Her eyes became teary and she threw her arms around his neck, kissing him again. "Yeah, you know, I kind of did." She whispered.
He hugged her to him. "I missed you too. I thought I lost you."
"I thought I lost you too, boyo."
He grinned and held up a perfectly round, gold sphere between his forefinger and his thumb. "I remember there being quite a crowd around the last time I asked. But, will you take this ring back?"
"Could I take you back instead?" she teased.
He slipped the ring back into place. "All yours."
She smiled, tears glistening on her cheeks, and leaned her head on his shoulder.
A camera flash went off behind them.
"Meg!"
