Chapter Twenty-nine: Can This Be Called a Double Homicide?

Anna sank back into the sofa cushions, brushing her temporary short bangs out of her eyes. She sipped her coffee as she opened her book and checked her watch. Cavel was going to stay with Quatre for two days before coming back. As soon as he did, Hoshimawari Mei was going to disappear for good and Anna was going to send the kid someplace safe. She should have felt safe and accomplished knowing that her double work was almost over, but there was an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. It was the same feeling she had the day Duo and Heero had been killed.

"People just don't stay dead around us for some reason. Wonder how long our luck will actually last?" she mused out loud. She shook her head and went back to her Forester novel.

Horatio Hornblower had just warned Edrington of the French's arrival when a sharp knock startled her out of her book. Anna sighed and put it on the table. She gave it a purposeful look as if to tell it not to go anywhere before heading towards her door.

Anna looked out of the peephole and into the darkened hallway. There was nobody to be seen. She placed a hand on her magnum and cautiously pulled the door open. There was in fact no body in the hall that she could see; however, there was a box left on the floor. Anna frowned, glanced around, and carefully picked up the box. It wasn't ticking which was a good sign. Stepping back inside and locking the door she shook the box out of curiosity. It did not rattle.

Now completely absorbed in the package, Anna sat back down on the couch, Forester temporarily abandoned. It was a long narrow box wrapped in dark green paper. There was a white envelope attached to the outside. Anna eagerly opened it and pulled out the card.

Yori ryuu chishio e hoshi hokori.

Anna sat back in bewilderment. "From dragon's blood to star dust?" she said. Something clicked inside her brain. "Wufei...he found me..." She quickly pulled the green paper off the box. "Why would he be giving me anything?"

Underneath the paper was a plain brown box. Anna shook off the lid and pushed aside the tissue paper surrounding the item inside. At first she did not recognize what lay in the bottom of the box. She pulled it out and let out a strangled gasp. It was a Japanese fan and more importantly, it was her own fan.

Wufei had repaired it. It had gleaming ivory sides and the spokes also were made of ivory. The paper between the spokes was a sturdy type and it could not be ripped. It was a pale off white color. Anna smiled and opened the fan. On the left side, a gleaming black dragon arched up and towards the middle. The black jewels glimmered in the lamplight and the jade jewels shone out as the eyes. The claws on the dragon were silver and one of the upper claws was curled down, but the other was outstretched towards the right side. Covering the right side of the fan were blue and purple jeweled stars.

Anna fingered the delicate jewel work. It was fragile and sturdy all in the same construction. She had first gotten the fan before the war with Marimeia. It had become a very dangerous thing when she met Ryuujin and she had been forced to learn to control the impulse to hit people over the head with it. Besides that it had been her favorite hand to hand weapon.

She tipped it towards her. Sure enough, there were covered holes in the top of the spokes. All it took was a sharp flick of her wrist and darts coated with a sleeping drug flew out of all of them and there were seven darts in each spoke. Anna ran her hand down to the base of the fan. Two more gems decorated the bottom part. However, if she remembered correctly, they also served a purpose. She pressed the ruby heart and metal shot out of the ivory ends, covering the fan within half a second. The same design was on the outside but the dragon was red with black eyes and the stars were black. She pressed the heart again and the shield retreated back into the ivory. She pressed the amethyst star and a dagger shot out of the bottom of the fan. Her lips curled upwards in a smile. She'd have to remember not to hold that close to her body when she did that. She pressed it again and the blade vanished inside the fan. She shut the fan and ran to the door.

"Wufei? Wufei! Fei-chan!" she yelled. He was gone. Anna sighed. It was a gift and somehow she knew it was a peace offering. She just hoped she'd see him again. She went back inside to her thoughts and Forester.

He was being followed. He'd first felt it an hour ago. That unsettling, ominous feeling that he was being followed for bad purposes. The man posing as Duo Maxwell stopped on the street corner and rubbed his hands together. It was not quite winter yet, but it was getting cold outside.

Victor had sent him back to Chicago of 2013 to `observe.' Wait and watch he had said, and if the time is right make your move. The problem was, he didn't have a move. He had the feeling Victor knew that. So he decided to improvise. He would go back to the Maxwell/Yuy apartment and wait. And hope he survived the night.

Trowa watched him as he crossed the street and tried to blend in with the crowd. He'd been following the man for at least forty minutes but had not been able to get him in a secluded area. Trowa had assumed that the Duo-double figured out he was being followed. Trowa was hoping he hadn't figured out by whom or for what reason.

Preparing himself to make his move, Trowa crossed the street after him. He inched closer and closer through the sea of streaming people but always stayed out of his sight. He smiled to himself as the double continuously glanced over his shoulder. Without warning, the double disappeared inside a bookstore. Trowa stood by the window and waited.

Duo dashed through the store breathing hard. He wasn't here to observe; he was here to be executed. He ran to the checkout desk and nearly fell into the cashier. "I need your phone, now!" he panted.

The startled cashier nodded and handed him the line phone. "Dial eight to dial an outside line." He said.

The double hit eight and quickly punched in the number to the Maxwell/Yuy apartment. It rang four times before somebody answered. It was a male voice.

Anna's Sparky had picked up the phone in the kitchen. "Hello?" Cavel greeted.

"Listen to me. There after me, he's going to murder me right here in the city." The double hissed.

Sparky frowned. "Who is this?"

"Duo Maxwell."

Quatre sat at the kitchen table, looking at Cavel. The blonde gave him a questioning glance as the younger man's face took on a startled expression.

"Who is after you?" Cavel asked.

"Trowa Barton. He's going to kill me."

"Trowa Barton?" he repeated to himself. Meg joined them in the kitchen.

"Yes! He's here to kill me. He's been following me for at least thirty minutes and you've got to help me!"

"Where are you?"

He asked the frightened clerk what the address was and repeated it to Sparky.

"I'll be right there. Stay calm, and don't go anywhere." Sparky said.

"Fine, but hurry." The double hung up the phone. He glared at the clerk, which silenced the question on his lips.

Cavel hung up the phone and faced Meg and Quatre. "Mr. Maxwell is in trouble. I'm going down there. Both of you stay here and I'll be back within the hour."

"Someone should go with you, Cavel." Quatre said, standing.

"No. The more people that get tangled up in this the worse it will be. Stay here with Miss Collins. I'll be back." He grabbed the laptop off the countertop and ran to the door.

"Be careful, kid." Meg called after him.

He nodded and was out the door in a flash.

The double was standing between the horror and sci-fi watching the back of Trowa's head. All he had to do was wait, and his `comrades' would come for him. But Trowa wasn't going to wait around any longer. The double looked up, startled, as the bell over the door clattered. Trowa stepped in and automatically locked eyes with the man.

"Your time." Trowa said quietly.

The double snarled something at him and bolted for the back door, Trowa hot on his trail.

Sparky ran down the street trying not to run into people. The address was not that far from where he had been, but he couldn't figure out why he hadn't gotten there. He muttered something under his breath and dodged down another street.

Ryu and Heero stopped at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the second floor flat. The taller man had one hand under Heero's elbow to support him and Heero was staring up at the window.

"You're sure this is it?" Ryu asked, keeping a constant look out for suspicious movements.

"Hai." Heero murmured.

"All right then. Fair warning, I am not carrying you up those steps." Ryu said, emphasizing not.

"I wouldn't let you." Heero replied darkly. With seeming little effort, he shook the blue-eyed man's arm away and shot up the stairs at a brisk jog. With crossed arms, Ryu glared at him from the ground.

"Show off." He said, following in the Japanese boy's wake.

Heero leaned on the doorbell, which caused the device to go off four or five times before the door was opened slowly and the muzzle of a gun peered out.

"Who's there?" Quatre asked.

"Old friends." Heero said.

The gun was withdrawn and Quatre opened the door. "Heero! How in the world did you get here?"

Heero nodded over his shoulder. "I intercepted your message to Chase. I was planning on coming alone, but Ryuujin came with me. You remember him."

Quatre smiled. "Of course. It's good to see you again. Come in."

Heero and Ryu stepped in and Quatre shut the door behind them. Heero's eyes darted over to the coat rack near the door. There were three coats on it, one decidedly female.

Heero's gaze locked on Quatre. "Who else is here?"

"My name is Meg Collins. I'm a friend of Anna's." Meg introduced herself from across the room.

Heero glanced up. "Ms. Collins."

"Meg, this is Heero Yuy and Ryuujin." Quatre said. He frowned. "Heero, something's up with Duo. He called not five minutes ago saying he was in trouble. Cavel went to help him."

"Who's he?" Heero asked.

"A friend Anna made. He can be trusted."

"Where are they?"

Quatre gave him the address of the bookstore.

Ryu had slipped upstairs during the conversation. He wasn't sure why, he was being led by a feeling. He made his way past the second floor and into the loft. Quatre's things were up there lying on the bed. He wasn't sure what was drawing him to it except flashes of images in the back of his mind. He picked up a blue book off the foot of the bed and skimmed through it. There were dates on the top of every page in Quatre's handwriting. It was a journal going all the way back to the first war. He suddenly knew what he was looking for. The date his only lead to his parents had been taken away from him.

As he had thought, the date he was looking for was in there. The writing had changed, but it was still Quatre's. It was more of a desperate scrawl than a legible print. He heard the conversation coming to an end downstairs so he scanned down the page quickly. Quatre had recorded the whole day, from the first instant Zero had taken over the destruction of the colony. The lead to his parents had been on that colony. And now he knew why he had lost its signal, and why it hadn't been there when he arrived. Quatre Winner had destroyed it over twelve years ago. Ryu felt his blood boil in his veins. Before his anger could snap into control, he heard Heero's voice.

"Ryu! Let's go!" Heero barked.

Ryu set the book back down where he had found it. "We will meet again, my blonde friend. Count on it." He growled. He went downstairs to join the others.

Heero was at the door. "Trowa's after Duo. We have to get there first. Let's move."

"Right." He nodded at Meg and let his gaze fall on Quatre. The stare gave the younger boy an icy feeling.

Heero was out the door and back down the steps and ignoring the pain before Ryu caught up to him in the parking lot of the complex.

"Are we walking or driving?" Ryu asked.

"We're doing neither. We're running. The address isn't that far from here, but we'd never get there in all traffic. It's that way." Heero took off.

"He's going to kill himself." Ryu muttered. He followed.

They got to the bookstore and Heero flung the door open, breathing hard. "Did a man with a braid and a man with long bangs just come in here?" he demanded.

The frazzled cashier nodded. Ryu came in behind him and the clerk passed out. Heero looked at Ryu.

"The sword. Gets them every time." Ryu shrugged.

Heero shook his head and headed back into the night.

Sparky was getting irritated. He would hear shouts and warnings that sounded like Trowa and Duo, but he could never get there fast enough to see them. They were constantly weaving through the night crowd.

The double was fighting to stay in the crowd. He knew that Trowa would not shoot him if innocent people surrounded him. He just didn't know how long he could stay safely out of shooting range. If Trowa got one clear shot, he would take it. Up ahead the traffic was clearing out. People on the next block were far and few between. The double let out a curse, but there was nothing he could do. If he went into one of the stores, Trowa would catch him in the alley in the back. If he took to the rooftops his killer would have an even greater chance. His options were running slim. He smiled grimly. It was better to end it here, where the other gundam pilots were. If Trowa killed him now, the ex-Heavyarms pilot was doomed as well. And Trowa knew it.

Heero stopped abruptly on a street corner, causing Ryu to crash into the back of him. Heero ignored it and picked something up from the ground. It was a gold chain with a broken clasp and cross hanging from it.

"Duo." Heero said.

"We're running out of time." Ryu said darkly. He could sense the battle about to begin, even though it only included two men. When he focused, he could always sense if there was bloodshed in the air.

"Which way?" Heero asked with aggravation.

Ryu's eyes darted quickly over the cement and people to get a feel for direction. "That way." He said, leading Heero up the sidewalk. Suddenly the blue-haired man stiffened before breaking out into a run.

"Ryu!" Heero shouted. He ran after him, again ignoring the dull burning sensation in his side.

Sparky was running as fast as he possibly could between people. He had seen Trowa, and was chasing glimpses of the man through the downtown of the city. They were getting into a neighborhood that was lacking in several things. It was namely lacking streetlights, windows without bars on them, and other people. If they moved much farther in the direction they were going, they might run into trouble other than themselves.

The double knew it was over. He flung himself across the street and stopped by the light pole. They were no longer in the heart of the city so there weren't many other people or cars. Trowa stopped on the opposite side of the street and drew his weapon.

"Under orders from General Victor of OWN, your services are hereby terminated." Trowa said flatly. He felt as if he may as well be shooting himself in the head. He, Victor, Jack, and the anesthesiologists were the only ones that knew the real Duo Maxwell was in Germany, year AC 209.

Cavel half dashed around the final corner to see Trowa aiming his gun at Duo. He jerked himself back and flattened himself against the wall so he could watch without being seen. Terror shone in his eyes. He had no idea what to do.

Heero and Ryu were running down the final blocks because they were close, and Heero could sense it as well as Ryu now. They did not have much time at all. A sharp pain ran through Heero's side and he grabbed for the wall to steady him. Ryu turned.

"Are you all right?"

"I'll be fine." Heero shoved himself off the wall. "We have to keep moving."

"Do you need help?"

"No."

Trowa stood in his place; gun aimed at the double's heart. The double stood on the corner opposite from him, glaring at his soon to be murderer.

"I helped you." He shouted.

"We hired you. You did not deliver in a timely manner. It's over." Trowa replied automatically.

"I can disappear. None of them know. Come on, Trowa. You aren't really going to do this, right, man?"

"I have orders."

"We were friends." The double said loudly.

Trowa's eyes narrowed. This had gone too far already. He cocked his gun and lifted his aim. Ryu and Heero dodged into sight just as Trowa pulled the trigger.

"Duo!" Heero screamed.

The double was dead before he hit the ground.

Time froze to a standstill as Heero's furious and anguished gaze locked with Trowa's warning one.

"Heero..." he started.

"Murderer. Traitor." Heero hissed.

"It's not..."

Heero ignored him and lunged forward, drawing his gun as he went. Trowa holstered his gun and took a half step back.

"Gomen." He murmured and disappeared in a flash of white light.

"Trowa! Come back, you back-stabbing traitor!" Heero shouted. "Kuso!"

Ryu had knelt by the body. "Heero, he's not coming back."

Heero turned around and for the first time looked at the body on the ground. The Japanese man bit his lip. "Not again." He murmured. He knelt by the body and pulled Duo's look-alike into his lap. He checked for a pulse and found none. He angrily brushed a stray tear off his face. "It's over for him." Heero whispered.

Ryu shook his head. "What about Dr. J? He saved you both once before."

"He died five years ago." Heero said.

"You're sure?"

"No. We'd never find him in time, even if he were." Heero replied, hardening his voice.

"I'm sorry."

Heero shook his head. He gently laid the double back on the ground and put the cross on his chest. Heero reached out and brushed two fingers across the other's cheek. "Farewell, my friend. Tamadachi. I'll get him. I give you my word."

Heero stood and Ryu moved to stand next to him.

"What are you going to do?" Ryu asked.

"Find Trowa." Heero answered. "Meg Collins is a coroner, ne?"

Ryu nodded.

"Call her. I want her to do the autopsy. We can't get him back to AC 209 without Chase and I'm not going to risk that. Meg may be the only medical person we can trust until we find Anna." He cringed at the name. "I should have never brought them into this..."

"They would have found out anyway. It's too late to change what you did. But Trowa's ready and willing to kill. Anyone. You should go back to Chase and Odin. Leave Barton to me." The soldier said, a small grin forming at the last sentence.

"No."

"Heero, if you don't go back, Chase will track you down. If you don't let that heal, she'll track you down and if you aren't already dead she'll kill you."

Heero glared at him. "Listen to me, Ryuujin, Trowa-"

Ryu cut him off. "Trowa isn't the biggest link in this chain. If you get wrapped up in just going after him this organization of his will take over the world while you seethe. Focus, Yuy. You can't go off on a killing spree against Trowa Barton."

Heero snarled out something in Japanese, which the taller man did not understand. "Call Meg." Heero growled and stalked off down the street, abandoning his loss to his anger.

Ryu's eyes flashed. "You just leave Barton to me." He grinned. He pulled out the cell phone Heero had tossed to him and called Meg to report the death of one Duo Maxwell.

Sparky had watched the entire ordeal, down to Heero Yuy stalking off the scene. He pressed himself against the wall, his eyes bright with panic. This was totally unexpected. Cavel knew that Trowa Barton had been dedicated to OWN, but he never imagined that he go so far as to kill one of his former teammates.

Sparky knew that Trowa was going back to OWN headquarters. When he got there, he knew that Jack Avis would inform him of Quatre Raberba Winner's untimely death. Cavel shivered. This was suddenly turning into a very different game. He couldn't wait two days to go back. He couldn't wait any longer, period. Something had gone really wrong, and the only one he knew could figure it out was Trowa Barton's most likely next target. He pulled out the laptop and powered it up. Within seconds, the only people left on the street were the grinning Ryuujin, and the dead Duo double.

Chase Yuy felt the warm, bright light fade around her as she was left in her own apartment in Chicago. She opened her eyes to see the slightly messy room she had used to work in. She growled something in Japanese. "This has gone too far, Trowa."

The door clicked open and a gun was pointed at her face before she could even reach for her own. She nearly laughed when with joy when she saw Quatre. "Quatre-kun! You're okay!"

"Chase?" The gun dropped as the two friends embraced. "You got away! I'm so glad to see that."

"And I'm glad to see you well, my friend," Chase answered him as she stepped away. "I'm in a rush though. I have to find Heero."

"He disappeared with Ryuujin looking for Duo and Cavel. Duo called a while ago saying that Trowa was trying to kill him and that he needed back up. I haven't heard from any of them since."

The phone rang loudly and Chase grabbed it. "Moshi moshi?"

"Chase?"

"Ryu? What happened? Is everything okay?"

"No, Chase-chan. Duo's dead."

"Where are you?"

"What is it, Chase?" Quatre asked.

There was a pause as Chase listened to Ryuujin's location and then she looked at Quatre as she hung the phone up. "Duo's dead," she answered.

Quatre turned pale as he sat down. "What are we going to do?"

Chase growled several curses in Japanese as she turned around and left a whole in the wall from a well-placed kick. "I'm going to find Heero." That said, she stalked out of the flat.