Disclaimer: Gundam Wing is not mine; the series belongs to Bandai, Sunrise and load of other people I have never met. However the situations, original characters, the M-Utatek (no matter how improbable it may be) and anything else NOT original to the GW Universe is mine, any flames for any reason like pointing out that improbability will be laughed at and fed to my Plot Bunny Mkha, who will eat it and leave plenty bunny raisins for you. Not for profit, just for fun.

Started September 11th 2004

Title: Afterthoughts of Discourse

Author: Vega-Lume

Warnings: Angst, MPREG, Yaoi, Het, limey? Lemony? Mountain Dew?(Let's just say there are some citrusy parts, k?)

Beta: None. All mistakes are mine alone.

Pairings: 2x1, 2xH, OMCx1

Afterthoughts of Discourse

Chapter 10

By Vel

Late Morning, Thursday December 1st - AC 197

"What the hell is going on?" Duo mumbled to himself as he looked over the documents again. But no matter which way he did the math, the figures just wouldn't add up. He had been poking at this same issue since Thanks Giving and still couldn't find the problem. He had gone through inventory and everything looked fine, so he went back to the computer and started looking through all of the documents starting back when he and Hilde started working together and had just, finally after many days of working managed to find a discrepancy.

"Boss?" Duo looked up to see his most trusted foreman standing just outside of his office door.

"Hey Jonesy," Duo smiled and turned away from his computer, "what can I do for you?"

"Nothing boss, it's just I was going to make a lunch run to Minnie's Deli and wanted to see if you wanted anything."

"No, I'm not hungry, but thanks anyway."

"Ok, I'll be back before my lunch is over."

Duo nodded and the other man walked away. Turning back to his computer, Duo pulled up another file of the businesses ins and outs, now that he had gotten an idea of the exact nature of the issue he now knew where to look for confirmation.

Several hours later he was staring in disbelief out his window at Jonesy. The foremen was out there doing his job, and acting as if he had nothing to hide. However the security recordings didn't lie.

Turning back to his desk Duo picked up his cell phone and dialed a number from memory.

"Winner Industries, Cilice speaking. How may I direct your call?"

"Hello Cilice, this is Duo Maxwell. I need to speak to Quatre please, it's a bit urgent."

"Oh, Mister Maxwell, let me see if he is available," she replied and put him on hold. It was only a few moments later when she connected again and said, "Transferring you now."

"Thank you." Duo replied and a minute later Quatre was on the line.

"Duo, is everything okay? Cilice said it was urgent."

"Hilde, Xiiro and I are all fine but I have a major problem with an employee and I some needed advice right away."

Quatre's sigh of relief was audible, "what's the issue?"

"Theft," Duo said simply. "I noticed something was wrong about two weeks ago but didn't really look into it a thoroughly as I should have because of the holiday. Today I was working on the books and I noticed the figures, the ins and outs just weren't lining up with the inventory and shipping logs. I didn't want to automatically jump to the conclusion that someone was stealing so I went over everything with a fine tooth comb. Things were coming in on schedule and payments were being made but the logs never showed some of them going back out again. No money was coming in for them, and the items were not on the property. I finally pulled up the security footage for one of the storage areas and went back to when the items were signed in for and stored. The same day they arrived my foreman is seen filling a box and putting it in his car."

Quatre hummed, "approximately how much was the merchandise worth?"

Duo turned back to his computer and found the figure, "Almost 50,000 credits."

Quatre nearly choked on his tea, "Okay, first thing you need to do is call your attorney, all colonies permit the victim of theft, employee or otherwise to file a lawsuit immediately. He or she…"

"She," Duo interrupted.

"She can do that right away and Law enforcement should be able to freeze your employee's assets immediately. The courts will then hold them until after the case is through and then give them to you. The plus side is they usually build interest and you'll get that too. You might even get back your out of pocket court fees and attorney costs. I also suggest asking her if hiring an independent forensic accountant to go over your books would help your case. There may be more theft you may have missed. They can go through everything with even a finer comb and might find something you missed."

"Wait a sec, I'm writing this down," Duo said as he scribbled on a note pad. "Okay, keep going."

"Next," Quatre continued. "After you're done with the attorney, call the police and file a report, they'll need your attorney's name and contact information. Also the name of the employee, the items taken, their worth and any other information you can add such as dates, times, and the fact that you have video documentation of at least one instance of theft."

"Are they going to come and arrest him today?" Duo asked.

"Probably not, and I know there is a risk of more theft but I suggest not firing him today. If he still has some of your stock at home he may dispose of it. But be warned, the police will come and poke around, probably over the course of a few days, so if you haven't fired him by then he'll know. After the police, call your insurance agent, your insurance should cover some theft or embezzlement so you may be able to recover some portion of your loss."

"Yeah, we've been paying a lot to have the best coverage we can for the business, it's a relief to know this loss isn't going to break us."

"If you need any more help, let me know. I can send you a few of my employees to help you out or loan you enough funds to cover costs so you don't lose customers."

"Thanks Kat, I'll keep that in mind. I'll talk to you later."

"Give Hilde and the baby a hug for me."

"I will," Duo replied then disconnected the call. Setting his cell phone aside he tuned to the vid phone and called his attorney.

An hour and a half, four phone calls, two cups of coffee, and one splitting headache later Duo sat at his desk with his head pillowed in his arms.

Their attorney, May Roca, immediately began the paper work to start the law suit and freeze Jonesy's assets. May also told him to hire investigator to help him go through all the books and files and recommended a few investigators she trusted. She also agreed with Quatre about not firing Jonesy yet.

He then called the police and filed a report, the police agreed to wait until after Duo and the investigator went through all the files so they had the most information possible before they sent someone out to the yard.

The call to the insurance company confirmed that he was covered for employee theft for up to 150,000 credits; however it could take months before they could pay up because they wanted to see the outcome of the lawsuit. And the costs of their premiums were probably going to increase.

The last call was to the investigator. He selected one that worked graveyard and weekends and hired them for a weekend and scheduled them to come out to the yard on Friday an hour after closing to 7am and Saturday from 9 at night to 7am. He was assured that 2 days would be plenty for the size of the business but in the event that they needed a third day they would do Sunday night at a reduced rate.

Knowing there really wasn't anything else he could do today, Duo did his best to work though all the open orders, all the current shipments, checking anything and everything he may have missed the first time through. There were still days, weeks, worth of security footage to watch, thousands of individual pieces of inventory to check and it all had to be done before next week's shipments started coming in.

By the time the quitting time whistle blew, Duo's eyes were blurry and his headache had turned into a splitting migraine.

"Fuck," Duo groaned as he rubbed his tired eyes, and then turned to watch the employees through his window as they clocked out and left for the weekend. Once the yard was empty he did a property check, making sure all the gates, storage units and doors were locked and the security system was engaged.

After everything was as secure as he could make it he started back to the office only to realize that he really wasn't up to dealing with the problem anymore. His head was pounding and his stomach felt like it was full of broken glass and battery acid.

He only stayed long enough to shut down his computer and grab his coat and briefcase. He drove back to the apartment in silence.

When he walked into Hilde's apartment she knew right away that something was wrong.

"What happened?" she called in alarm. "You look like you were hit by a bus."

Duo sighed and rubbed at his tired eyes again. "I'm going to have to fire Jonesy," he said with a groan as he collapsed on to the sofa.

"Whatever for?" She exclaimed. "He's an excellent worker and one of the best people we've had working for us since Heero left."

"You know that issue I've been working on since Thanksgiving?"

Hilde nodded.

"Turns out Jonesy has been stealing our inventory and probably selling it off, then changing the books to show the items had been shipped without actually shipping them."

"Are… Are you sure?" She asked, looking shocked.

"I saw him with my own eyes on the security recordings. I spent all afternoon sifting through our files and found thousands of credits worth of stock just gone. Over 50 K just since Xiiro was born. Mostly in small crates of high value scrap metal like copper and platinum."

"Shit," she stated softly as she sank into the rocking chair.

"Exactly," Duo replied and collapsed face first on the sofa. "My head is killing me," he mumbled into a cushion.

"When was the last time you ate?" she asked as she got up to get him some aspirin and a glass of water.

"Breakfast," he groaned as he rolled onto his back.

"You only had a piece of toast and some coffee, and that hardly counts as breakfast," she scolded and grabbed an apple from the bowl on the counter. "Eat this before you take the aspirin, I'll order some pizza for dinner."

Duo ate the apple and took the pain meds while Hilde made the phone call, then he went to take a quick shower before the food arrived.

As they ate their meal he told her about his call to Quatre and the other calls after that.

"I think I should be at the office while the investigator is working," Hilde said, "Just in case they need help or have any questions. I can take Xiiro with me and she can sleep in my office."

Duo frowned.

"Well, you can't do it," Hilde added, "Or you won't have any sleep for work on Monday."

"True," he agreed, "but I can take care of Xiiro here so you can focus on helping the investigator. She won't disturb my sleep."

"Okay, it's probably best not to mess up her sleep schedule too much."

Duo nodded then took another bite of his pizza.

The next day the yard ran smoothly and Jonesy showed no indication that he was worried about getting in trouble for theft. Duo knew this because he watched him like a hawk all day. Every moment the man could be seen on camera was meticulously noted and recorded.

The moment the whistle blew and all the employees were gone Duo drove home so Hilde to have the car to drive back.

She made it back to the yard just in time to meet the independent investigator that their attorney had recommended.

"Duncan Stuart, forensic accountant," the man greeted.

"Hello, I'm Hilde Schbeiker, co-owner of the yard."

"The 'S' in M&S Salvage?" the man questioned and Hilde laughed.

"Yes," she confirmed. "My partner is Duo Maxwell, the man who hired you and we also have a silent partner, Mr. Yuy who is on an extended leave of absence."

Duncan wrote the information in his notebook as Hilde led him to her office where he could have full access to the computers and files.

"How long has this Mr. Yuy been gone and when is he due to return?" Duncan asked as he sat and set his kit on the desk

"He left several months ago and has not said when he plans to return."

"No guess as to when he'll be back?"

"No, he left for personal reasons and we're allowing him all the time and space he needs." Hilde said.

"Very well. Aside from Mr. Maxwell and yourself are there any other employees in management working on site at this time?"

"Yes there are 5, one foreman who oversees all the employees out in the yard and four leads, one over each section of the yard."

"And the sections are?"

"They're just numbered 1 through 4. 1 is our fully enclosed storage building where we store the smaller and sometimes larger valuable salvage. Section 2 is used to store the large items that would be difficult to steal, simply because they are too big or heavy. Section 3 is more secure than 2 but not enclosed, we use this area to dismantle and break down things like vehicles or machines for their parts. The last section is our unloading and distribution area, this is where everything no matter the size is delivered then sorted for storage."

Duncan made some more notes then asked, "How is your security camera system set up?"

"We have two layers of cameras that record 24 hours a day. Each of the camera recordings are saved to their own secure server which is housed offsite through another company. Each file is time stamped, numbered by location, and saved by the day from midnight to 11:59pm. It takes 3 separate passwords to access them from here."

Obviously impressed Duncan asked, "Two layers?"

"That was Mr. Yuy's idea; he's the one who set up the security system we're using now. He placed nearly 50 small, hard to see cameras throughout the yard, and then put in an dozen or so larger, very visible cameras as well. Each section had 10 small cameras and 3 large ones, his thinking was if someone was going to try to steal something they would look for a place where they could hide from a camera, but you can't hide from one if you don't know it's there. You can see them if you know what to look for but most people just don't notice them because of the larger cameras. There are also a few high quality exterior cameras covering all doors, gates, parking areas and fences."

"Where did the theft take place?"

"We're not entirely sure about all of them because Duo wasn't able to go through all the footage, but the one time he did catch it on video it happened in Section 1 and was caught by camera S104, the employee is seen filling a box with some very expensive copper wire that he himself had signed for earlier that day."

"S104?" Duncan prompted.

"The cameras are numbered by section the first part of the number is the section, the other 2 digits are the location numbers in the section and the letter indicates whether it was a small or large camera, so S104 is the 4th small camera in section 1."

"Why don't you show me what your partner has found so far in the way of missing product and I'll start from there."

"Sure thing," Hilde replied and pulled up the file Duo had complied over the past two days.

Duncan spent the next six hours going through everything, Hilde only leaving his side to fetch a file or something to help him out. He commented several times on how impressed he was by how well organized the company one and assured her that Jonesy had been very through in covering his tracks, so it wasn't their fault for missing the theft as long as they had. The man had become sloppy, probably comfortable with the fact that he had not been caught after doing it for so long.

"How long had it been going on?" She asked as she sat across from the man who had taken over Duo's desk.

"The earliest discrepancy I have been able to find was a relatively small amount of platinum that, according to your books, should still be in inventory but I have been unable to locate it. It shows that Mr. Jones signed for it on September 26th."

"Three months?" Hilde said in shock. "He has been stealing from us for over three months?"

"Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but he most likely started long before then, pocketing small bit here and there. As most of your orders are shipped he was probably padding the packages to make up the weight of the missing metals. Though he only started going for the big money back in November."

"That's when I had my baby," Hilde said, realizing that the man had used her and Duo's absence to take larger amounts at once. "I spent a lot of time in the hospital and Mr. Maxwell was there to help me out. We left Mr. Jones in charge while we were away."

"It certainly looks like he used your absence to his advantage," Mr. Stuart confirmed. "Well, I've done all I can here. I'll take this information back to my office and compile a report for you to submit to your attorney, the police, and your insurance."

"Thank you," Hilde replied as she followed him out to his car. "And you'll send us your bill?"

"No," Duncan replied as he climbed into his car, and then turned to offer her a clipboard with their contract on it. It had already been signed by Duo. "My bill will be included in the lawsuit and if you win, it will be paid by the defendant when your case is settled. If you lose then you will pay my company directly."

"Okay," she said and signed the contract sheet then bid the man goodbye as he closed the door and drove away.

Two days later their attorney had looked over all the information Mr. Stuart had complied, and formally submitted the information to the court then contacted the police and had a warrant issued for Jonesy's arrest. She called Duo and warned him that the police were on their way and that it would be best if he called Mr. Jones into the office so there wouldn't be a big scene in front of the other employees.

Duo agreed and just before lunch he called his foreman into the office.

"Hey boss-man, what's up?" Jonesy asked as he plopped into the sofa seemingly without a care in the world.

"I'm expecting someone and I needed you here to meet with them," Duo replied and as if on cue the phone on his desk beeped. Duo picked up the hand set and put it to his ear. "Yes, Julie? Oh yes, I've been expecting them, could you send them right through?" He listened to the yard's receptionist for a moment longer then said, "Thank you," before handing up.

I minute later there was a tap on the door and Julie stepped in, followed closely by two, uniformed police officers, one male, one female.

"Thank you Julie, I'll take it from here."

The young blonde woman cast her worried glance from Duo to Jonesy, who had suddenly become ghostly pale, then gave a quick nod before fleeing the tense situation she had just found herself in.

"Mr. Rutherford Jones?" The female officer asked and Jonesy nodded.

The male officer removed a stack of papers that had been stapled and folded in thirds from his pocket, "We have a warrant for your arrest," He held the papers out and Jonesy took them, his eyes going wide as a cold sweat broke out across his forehead.

"I didn't do this," he tried when he read the charges of theft, conspiracy to commit theft, and embezzlement. He was looking at serious jail time and thousands of dollars in fees and restitution.

Duo lifted single sheet of paper from his desk and held it out. The female officer took a quick glance at it as she took it and passed it to the foreman who was still seated on the sofa.

Jonesy crushed the security vid screenshot printout in his hand, "I thought we were friends."

"So did I," Duo replied sadly, and looked away as the male officer read Jonesy his rights and led him away.

Taking a thick folder from his desktop he gave it to the other officer, "here is a copy everything I found, a list of the entire inventory, I've highlighted all the missing items I have found so far and estimated their value. There is also copy of all the security footage. This is not the same report you received from the forensic accountant that my attorney sent to you."

"Here is the number of the filed report," she said trading a card for the file. "We'll be in touch."

Duo thanked her again and saw her out. He could see Jonesy sitting in the back of the police car while the other officer stood to the side typing on the tablet.

"Mr. Maxwell?"

Duo turned to see several employees standing around, watching the drama unfold. "Back to work everyone, there are still a few hours until quitting time."

"Yes sir," they chorused and then scattered like pigeons, leaving Duo alone in the gravel parking lot, watching the police car drive away.

Sunday December 4th – AC 197

"Comfortable?" Rachel asked as she took Heero's empty breakfast tray away, leaving his cup of tea on the table next to his chair. He still couldn't manage more than toast and jam in the morning but it pleased her to see the empty plate.

"Yes thank you," he replied politely, he felt almost uncomfortably full as he usually did right after a meal but he wasn't nauseous and hadn't been for a few days.

He fully understood now what Dr. Masahura had meant when he said that he would want to get up and start doing more, especially now that the cough had almost cleared up and he was able to sleep through the night.

He wanted to get up and help out instead of being waited on, and was tired of sitting almost all the time. However he knew that even though he was starting to feel well for the first time in months it wasn't wise to push it, he still felt the weakness in his body whenever he moved, he still needed help to the bathroom sometimes, and took naps in the afternoon.

He watched as the woman rinsed the plate then walk away, disappearing down the hall.

With a sigh he picked up the book he had been reading since yesterday and began reading where he had left off.

Rachel stopped in the open door of the room that Heero and Mary shared and watched the young woman play with her pet for a moment before clearing her throat to get the girl's attention.

"Mary, could you come with me for a moment?" Rachel asked.

"Sure," Mary replied, settling Pookie in his cage before following her to the living room, then taking a seat when the older woman patted the sofa.

Mary sent Heero a look of question then asked Rachel, "Is everything okay?" a hint of worry lacing her voice.

Rachel smiled at the pair and Heero set his book aside as it was clear the woman wanted to speak to them both. "Scott and I were talking last night, about you and what's going to happen when Heero gets well and when after the babies arrive. We have come to the conclusion that there is really only one thing we can do and that is to make you our legal children."

"You mean you want to keep us, for always?" Mary asked in a whisper.

"Yes, for always," Rachel confirmed. "There is a foster program through the H.O.P.E. registry that will allow us to become your legal guardians."

"What would we have to do?" Heero asked as he sat up a little more.

"I called my mom this morning, as you know she works for H.O.P.E. She said you are already registered in the system so all you need to do is fill out a little paperwork, pretty much the same forms you filled when you registered at the church, and then we send them in. After that you'll be assigned a caseworker who will come here to the house to talk to you. I'm not entirely sure what happens next, but my mother said that the caseworker will make sure that you want to live here and that we're not trying to force you in any way."

Heero remembered that day clearly when they went to the church to apply for the program where they would receive basic medical insurance, food and clothing vouchers, and could work in the soup kitchen for additional vouchers . Mary hadn't been old enough to apply before, all homeless children under the age of 15 were required to go to a group home unless they were with a parent or sibling 16 years or older. So they went into the program together, as siblings. They made up a back story using some of the facts from Mary and Heero's pasts, threw in some fake birthdays and legally became Heero and Mary Stevenson, according to the city of Starsdale and their H.O.P.E. program.

"Can we think about it?" Heero asked and Rachel smiled again.

"Of course, take all the time you need. And I don't want you thinking that you have to do this as way to pay us back. I want you to know that no matter what happens, you will always have a home here with us," She gave them each a pat on the shoulder then went outside to scrape and salt the front walk.

"What do you think Niisan?" Mary asked as she twisted some of her hair between her fingers. "I really like it here and I like Rachel, I- I miss having a mom."

"I know," Heero said softly, "and I like it here too."

"There's a 'but', isn't there." she stated.

"It isn't just you and me, it's the babies too, and that's a lot to deal with."

"I'll help you with that, you know I would," Mary said.

"I know," Heero said again, and then added. "If we do this, you are going to go to school."

Mary beamed, "I will and I'll work really hard, I promise!"

"And we have to do all we can to be helpful, and not make more work for them..."

"Agreed!" She shouted, "I'm already helping with the dishes and laundry, I can keep doing that, go to school and help you when the babies come."

Heero watched her hopeful face for several moments as he processed all the information then he said. "Okay, go tell her we said yes."

Mary let out an excited squeal and gave him a hug before running out to talk to Rachel.

Heero shook his head in amusement then settled back into the soft chair and picked up his book again.

It was some time later when the two women came back inside, it was clear they had both been crying and the smiles on their faces clearly showed how happy they were.

"Oh thank you," Rachel said as she came to embrace him. "I'm as happy now as I was when I learned I was going to have my babies," she admitted with tears in her eyes.

Heero and Mary smiled as Rachel went to find her phone so she could tell Scott the good news.

"Well, I think she's happy" Heero stated sarcastically and Mary smacked his shoulder.

T.B.C.