Chapter Three

Just like any other morning, Duo walked through the large double doors of the Preventor Headquarters just as the sun was peeking up over the mountains. He never got over how beautiful that was. He still wasn't used to being on Earth for extended periods. He had only been there briefly during the war and then he had more important things to worry about than the sunrise. Now, he paused on the steps to watch as the sky was colored orange and red. He smiled to himself and walked inside. Not seconds after he stepped onto the carpeted hallway, Sally came running down the hall and grabbed him by the arm.

"Where have you been?" She shouted and began dragging him down the hall.

"What do you mean!" Duo shouted, trying to keep up. "I'm actually early today!" He complained as he was shoved into a conference room with Sally slamming the door closed behind them. Duo blinked, trying to regain the focus he had lost while being dragged. Wufei and Zechs were sitting in the room, both looking as confused as he felt, and Heero sat with Relena across from them. Duo paused. Heero and Relena? They didn't work here! Over in the corner, Duo found Quatre and Trowa talking around the coffee pot. Before Duo could ask, Sally shoved him roughly into a chair next to Zechs and ushered Quatre and Trowa to join them.

"What is going on here, Sally?" Wufei asked, tired of all the secrecy.

"Yeah! What's the deal breakin my arm off?" Duo complained rubbing the joint where his shoulder and arm connected.

Sally looked gravely around at the others and took a calming breath. "We have a situation."

Quatre frowned. "What is it Sally? I don't think I've ever seen you this serious. Even during the war."

Sally nodded. "It's bad. I'm sure you all saw the news last night?"

"Oh, is this about the psycho they arrested? The one who says we killed his family?" Duo asked and leaned back in his chair. "Don't worry about him Sally, he's nothing."

"He's a lot more than you think Duo." Sally said, her voice rising.

"What do you know?" Zechs asked.

Another calming breath and Sally continued. "That man, Reigo DeNadda, he escaped from prison last night."

Duo spit out his mouthful of coffee. "Escaped? How? The holding cells on L2 are practically impenetrable! Hell even a Gundam has trouble getting through."

"I know." Sally said seriously. "The guards found his cell to be empty this morning with a note laying on the bed." She pulled out a small piece of paper from her notes. It was a picture of a prison bed with the pillow slit to make words. The words read: The Gundam pilots will pay. The picture was passed around and then Quatre turned to Sally.

"How did he escape?"

"No one knows." Sally replied. "They found no forced entry or exit and everything, except for the pillow, was in tact. Also, they have it on good authority that he will be armed and very dangerous. We don't know what he's capable of, but we know it can't be good."

Trowa fixed his sturdy gaze onto Sally. "What do you purpose we do?"

Sally smiled slightly. "I'm glad you asked." She reached into her files and pulled out another picture. This one was of a very small house on the beach. "I've arranged for this safe house. Quatre, Trowa, Wufei, Duo and Heero; I want you five to move in there a.s.a.p. for your own safety."

"I will not." Heero said.

They all turned to him. He was sitting with his head bowed and his arms crossed over his chest.

"Relena needs me." He said plainly.

"I need you to be alive." Relena argued. She turned to Sally. "How long would this be for?"

Sally shrugged. "I was just getting to that." She turned to Zechs. "Zechs, I would like you and Noin to do everything in your power to find and stop this man before he can hurt the others."

The couple nodded and Sally smiled, turning back to Relena. "They would only be there until Reigo can be caught again."

Relena nodded and turned back to Heero. "Heero, you must go with the others."

Heero turned to her, his expression grim. "I will not leave you alone."

Relena sighed and stood. "Excuse us, please." She said and ushered Heero out of the room. The others exchanged a few uneasy glances while they waited. After a few minutes, Heero and Relena returned. Heero huffed and sat in his chair. "I'll go." He said and then turned to Zechs. "I want your word, Merquise, that no harm will come to her."

Zechs knew better than to argue with Heero when it came to his sister, so he nodded. "You have my word, Yuy."

Seemingly satisfied, Heero nodded and sat back down in his chair. Wufei leaned forward and placed his hands on the table. "When do we leave?"

"Tonight. I want you all to stay here for the day, preparing, and then a transport will take you to the cottage as soon as night falls." She picked up a folder and handed it to Trowa, who was closest to her. "This will contain all the information you will need about the house, the area and everything we know so far. Contact between Preventor HQ and your hideout will be limited. I only want to hear from you if you feel endangered and need to be moved."

"And food?" Duo asked, hopefully.

"The cottage is stocked with several food items, but if you run out you'll have to find your own." She replied.

"Find our own?" Duo shouted, incredulously.

"Yes Duo, is that a problem?" Sally glared.

Duo sat back down and shook his head. "No Ma'am."

"Good." Sally stood up and frowned. "I suggest you browse that file and then prepare for your trip. Each of you will travel in pairs around town to collect clothes and the essential items you will need while away. I do not want anyone going anywhere alone. If anyone runs into trouble, I want you to contact me immediately. Is that clear?"

Muttered affirmatives went around the room and Sally nodded. "Good. I'll get to work. The sooner we can get things ready, the better." She finished and left the room.

The remaining friends shared concerned glances to each other before Zechs stood up.

"We should get to work." He turned to Noin. "We're going to need every contact we have."

Noin nodded and also stood. "I'll start making some calls."

"Please, allow me to help. I may have connections that neither of you do." Relena said and joined her brother and sister-in-law. She kissed Heero goodbye and they three were gone.

Heero remained frozen in his chair, anger radiating off his body. Quatre could sense it and it frightened him. He hadn't seen Heero like that since the war ended.

"She'll be fine, Heero. Zechs will watch over her." The blond Arab tried to comfort.

"Hn." Heero grunted and stood, walking to fill his coffee cup.

Wufei was equally sullen as he stood. "It will do us no good to just sit here." He looked at his friends. "We should go and prepare for our journey."

Quatre nodded. "Yes, your right." He stood. "Sally said to travel in pairs so…"

"I need not go." Wufei straightened. "I always carry emergency clothes with me. They are in my office."

Quatre smiled. "Good. Well then that leaves the four of us."

Duo stood and smirked. "Yeah. I'll go with Heero and you can go with Trowa."

Quatre blushed at the smirk and tone of Duo's voice but he didn't argue. He simply followed Trowa out of the office.

Duo bounded over to Heero and linked their arms. "Together again, eh buddy?" He grinned.

Heero rolled his eyes but smirked in spite of himself. He allowed himself to be dragged out of the room by an overly enthusiastic Duo and out of the large double doors. Wufei remained behind. He walked quietly back to his office and sat behind his desk. Zechs was no where to be found and Wufei assumed he had taken up residence in Noin's office, which was just down the hall. Wufei wasn't about to complain, he enjoyed the solitude. Leaning forward, he pulled open the center drawer of his desk. Inside was a small picture frame. The picture was of a young woman with jet black hair and shining pale eyes. Wufei smiled down at the picture. The woman was smiling and seemed to reflect a happiness that few ever found.

"Another day, another mission, Meiran." He smiled and kissed the tips of his fingers before placing them down on the glass. "Wish me luck." He whispered before sliding the picture down into his briefcase.


I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! And a big thanks goes out to my reviewers: Mousycoon and Espree. Thanks for your reviews guys! Every little bit helps! I'll try to get the next chapter out soon and I'm glad your enjoying the story!