Disclaimer: I don't own a thing (as sad as that realization is), except for the words I've written.
Warnings: Rated for adult language (Duo's got quite a surly mouth and mind), some violence, mild adult themes, and mild lime/lemon.
A/N: Seriously, it's getting good. These last few chapters have definitely been the most fun to write. Enjoy. Read? Review?
Maxwell
Chapter 25: When My Back's Against The Wall
Fighting - Saints of Valory
"This is ridiculous!"
The only thing Duo thought ridiculous about this situation was how Une herself was trying to skirt around the issue that they had near definitive proof for. But shit, at least things were getting interesting now- he'd never been one to back down from a good argument.
Duo pushed the cell phone they'd retrieved from Sean Davis' vehicle across the woman's cherry-wood desk. "Look familiar?"
Une's manicured fingers tapped against the desktop as she stared down at the device. "Preventer issue," she confirmed gruffly before glaring upwards. "Where did you get this?"
"It's Sean Davis' device," Wufei explained, a major lack of composure in his tone. "Go ahead, look at the call log."
The two men watched as the woman picked up the phone with hesitance, her eyes glancing between them before fingers swiped against the screen which Duo had since permanently de-secured. They noticed carefully her expression and then both let their shoulder's slacken as Une's eyes narrowed in suspicion a few seconds later.
"And you have spoken to whoever this number belongs to I suppose?" the woman asked, not bothering to look up towards them.
Duo might have laughed at her accuracy if it were happening under better circumstances. Instead he merely shrugged. "I'm sure the line's disconnected by now. Do you know if it's actually his?"
Une just stared at the phone. "I'm not certain. Someone would have to check inventory logs."
Wufei was seemingly less patient. "Are you willing to listen to us now?" he bit out, the words finally pulling Une's vision back upwards.
She stared at them, first studying, then fitting them with a perfectly pleasant smile. Except that Une was not known for perfectly pleasant smiles. Shit, Duo knew it couldn't be that fucking easy.
The woman sighed. "I feel the need to share with you that Sean Davis turned in his resignation to this organization a little over twenty-four hours ago."
Twenty-four hours ago. Damn, that meant that when he'd visited them at the Winner safe-house he'd already severed ties with Preventer. The Meister R idea was becoming more and more plausible now.
Duo's teeth clenched. "Did he say why?"
"I cannot disclose that information to you," Une responded, meeting his harsh gaze evenly.
"You do realize that only worsens our case against the man," Wufei spat back.
Une's lips were pulled down sharply at the corners. "There is no case-"
"The hell there isn't, because Prev's involved in this, one way or another," Duo laughed out, something almost hysterical in the sound. "I finally think I get it now- Preventer's hot on the trail of people who threw out a body that sure as shit looked a lot like Heero Yuy. But they know it's not- they know it's not him, can't be him, because Prev just ain't that stupid."
"Duo-" Wufei was trying to warn him off the rant, but Duo was having none of it, ignoring him pointedly.
"You use us as bait- let things play out like they're supposed to. You know about the grant proposal because everyone in the entire Sphere who reads the news knows about it. But you also know about Winner Corp's involvement- so you're getting warmer, but you still need your trump card." Duo took a breath to steady himself. "You need the Gundam pilots back together- because that's what M.R. needs and in order to investigate further, to get the evidence and leads that you need you have to let the research take place- have to let me get taken- have to let them take cheap shots at Barton. Because that's all that matters, right Une- is that Prev get's the guy- no matter the consequences. That's your job, to prevent things from escalating, regardless of who you hurt in the process."
At some point during his monologue Duo had come to stand over Une's desk, intimidating just as Quatre had done earlier at his company offices. The woman was staring up at him in- could that have actually been shock? Fuck, never thought he'd see the day.
After a few seconds of sharp silence Une fitted them both with a dark glare. "Sean Davis resigned because he had reason to believe that his family was in danger because of- your investigation."
At that Duo found his body recoiling away from her desk. He furrowed his brows. "Family?"
Une's lips pursed. "Yes. He's married- he has a child. But I suppose that idea of normalcy is probably too hard for you- or your comrade's outside- to wrap your heads around."
Married. Child. Duo felt his skull flood with a sensation of lightheadedness. When he met Wufei's gaze he found a mirrored expression of confusion- like they'd both just been sucker punched in the solar plexus, winded and dazed.
Une sucked in a breath. "Preventer has been using you, yes. But Davis was there to keep tabs on you- to protect you from whoever it is that wants you dead."
"No fucking way- it's too dangerous."
Trowa just stared at him, that little imperceptible amusement showing through the blankness. "That coming from you?"
Duo's teeth gnawed at his lip. "Quat, back me up here," he all but pleaded.
Quatre too was staring at him, but with less condescension at least. "You'll think I've gone crazy- but I agree with Trowa on this one."
Heero's hand found its way to Duo's shoulder before he could jump up in frustration. "It's a solid plan," he explained calmly into his ear.
Duo shook the fingers away, but didn't bother with anymore arguments. He looked to Wufei then, but there were going to be few things leaving that man's mouth now for a long while. He'd still not quite recovered from the realization that they might've pinned the wrong guy this entire time, and a fellow agent to boot.
Quatre brushed his palm against the table, smoothing out the large blu-print he had laid out across its surface. "The schematics Iria sent over show a helipad-" he reached for a set of small photographs then. "And these images show that it is still highly operational, despite Winner Corp's ongoing refurbishment of Med Facility E-251."
"And it is only fifty miles south of where 'Heero's' body was found," Trowa supplied, the words flowing succinctly along with Quatre's explanation.
Yes, Duo had heard this all before- two other times to be exact. Shit, he didn't need a rehashing, he just couldn't bring himself to believe that Trowa allowing himself to blatantly be captured was a good fucking idea.
Of course if it had been him in the same position...he could feel Heero's eyes on the back of his neck as if the man could somehow read his mind. Hell, he probably could, bionic as he seemed to be.
"We definitely don't have Preventer's help in this anymore," Duo grumbled out. "Une was explicit in that. There's no Agent Davis here to stalk us and make sure we don't all get shot in the head."
"We've pulled off harder stunts than this before." Quatre shrugged off the other man's abnormal concern.
Duo grabbed the photographs out of the blond's hand, gave them a second's glance, and then threw them back on the table. Fuck, he had nothing else to say, they were right, it was as good a plan as any.
Trowa and Quatre checked into the hotel together at three o'clock.
At three-thirty, Heero still hadn't made a tail.
By four o'clock the three ex-pilots, still sitting slumped in the compact car they'd borrowed from Sally, had grown restless. Quatre had missed his hourly check-in.
By four-fifteen Wufei tried Quatre's cellphone and received no answer. Not entirely suspicious in and of itself, but it had been a line to a pre-payed cell, one they'd bought for emergency use to stay in communication without interference from taps or any other bullshit comm monitoring, so in all likelihood he should have picked up.
At four-thirty they went to investigate.
They were dressed in the most inconspicuous clothing possible. Duo had hidden his braid down a hooded jumper, while Wufei and Heero wore caps low over their eyes. But still, somehow it felt like they were being noticed. Probably because, unlike their braided companion, the other two looked as though they were trying to blend in.
But even so they made it past the front desk with nothing more than a 'hello' to the clerk there- a young woman only half paying attention as she peaked over her glossy magazine. A good thing for them, but not a good sign for the building's security. Someone with a sawed-off shot-gun could have just as likely waltzed through the lobby and nobody would have been the wiser.
When they got to the room marked 606 the card-reader was broken. Or more accurately the card-reader was marginally okay, but the entire door jam was splintered where someone had used something like a crowbar to pry it open.
Out of old habit the three filed in around the frame, Heero and Duo on one side and Wufei leaning against the other. With a swift kick Heero shoved open the door and Wufei dropped to his knees, gun cocked and ready, spinning around to the doorway, the general idea being that if someone were still in the room they'd aim high where the presumed mass should be.
But there was nobody in the room.
"Shit," Duo breathed out as the three took in the small hotel room. It was entirely trashed, without a trace of their comrades left behind.
"This is what we wanted to happen- wasn't this our objective?" Wufei did not sound entirely certain of the words tumbling from his own mouth.
Duo nodded once, kicking at some crumpled sheets on the floor. "Yeah, but we were supposed to follow- and I didn't think they'd fuckin' take Quat too. Why would they bother with him?"
"Once the replicas are complete they'd need to dispose of the originals." Heero's voice cut through the room like a knife.
Duo felt his stomach begin to boil at the thought. He swallowed back the growing lump in his throat with a scowl. "We can still follow- Quatre was almost certain they'd be headed for the facility south of Sanc."
Wufei looked between them with a solemn frown. "Right now it appears that that is our only option."
Between them they had three Glocks, about forty-seven rounds, a flick-knife, and nothing to fucking lose. They were three up against who knows how many. They had, presumably, very little time and nearly no element of surprise. They were being watched, probably photographed for all that was worth at this point. Maybe even being laughed at from behind a monitor somewhere unknown.
It was absolutely one hundred percent hopeless. But that's how they'd planned it.
"Don't fucking mess with ex-Gundam pilots," Duo had muttered on more than one occasion during their drive to Med Facility E-251. It was that sentiment that led them forward towards the uncertain fate of themselves and their comrades.
Waiting was always the part that Duo hated the most. Waiting before the war, waiting during the war, waiting after the war- didn't fucking matter, he hated all of it. Sometimes earth seemed to spin fast, sometimes slow. Tonight it had chosen slow. It would still be a while before the sun fully dipped below the horizon, plunging their surroundings into complete darkness instead of purple-grey dusk. At least on the colonies these things were more predictable, more stable, more accurate.
Several blocks from the facility they'd stopped at a convenience station, bought one of those plastic red cans for gas, a pack of overpriced water that came in glass bottles- something Duo never would have been compelled to purchase under any other circumstances- a handful of detailing rags, and a small, metallic lighter.
The rest of the way to the facility Duo and Heero hung the bottles outside their windows to empty. They parked down a block, left the car to sit in an alleyway mostly undisturbed by traffic, and Duo carefully divvied out the gas into each container, fitting it with a rag rolled down the glass necks, half-in, half-out. By the time he'd finished with the task they each carried two Molotov Cocktails, keeping their guns tucked at their backs, and made their way slowly towards the eastern side of the facility.
According to Quatre's intel these were the buildings scheduled last for referb and so proved to be good scrap for Duo's little diversion to take a hold of. There was a gate surrounding the entire thing- a precaution left-over from wartime- probably fitted with security or electric currents, but they weren't going to chance it and find out anyways. Duo lit Heero's first, watching as he hurled the glowing bottles up and over in a perfect arc to come into contact with the nearest structure's foundation. Then Wufei's, then his own. They exploded on the ground creating illuminated pools of burning liquid, crawling and licking at the vulnerable building.
For a moment the three men stood and admired their work. Two minutes later they'd found a crouched space across the street between what looked like tenement houses built decades ago. Four minutes later the sounds of sirens could be heard in the distance, making their way towards the ever-growing flames.
When the fire-engines arrived the gate system opened automatically to retrieve them and that's when they made their move. The three men jutted out from their hiding spot, running hard to keep pace, finding the last vehicle's blind-spot and edging along it through the open gate, undetected save for the blair of sirens now assaulting the facility's grounds.
Not fool-proof, but it had gotten them in and provided distraction and now was when the real plan started.
It had been Duo's idea to split up, cover more ground. Heero had been an adamant asshole about the whole thing, but surprisingly enough Wufei had agreed to it. Two against one, Duo had tried not to gloat about it. Little fucking victories and all. And so now, here he was, in stealth mode- like being holed up inside of his Deathscythe once again, silent and concealed and utterly deadly. He thought of the faces he'd seen during the war, the trembling lips, the shock, the light in their eyes just before the God of Death cut them down. Hell, he'd always liked that part- as sick as it seemed. He liked to be in charge, to know what was coming before anyone else, he fucking lived for shit like this.
By now he was sixty yards off from the fire, the sound of sirens still plentiful in the air, and the barest hint of smoke poking at something he was trying to suppress deep within his subconscious.
They'd know they were hear now, or at least predict that they were, but that was really okay. Fuck, if M.R. and Quinze and even Sean Davis for all they still knew were here waiting for them, it seemed only fitting to make such an entrance as this.
Duo moved slowly through the shadows, searching for something he wasn't sure he wanted to find. The helipad would be his first objective, but that was off the ground level, resting somewhere inward on one of the main buildings, several stories above his head. So instead he allowed himself a bit of leeway to subdue his curiosity.
He followed the cinderblock wall of what appeared to be a deserted office space, only two stories with square windows lining each floor and two entrances with thick plastic taped to where there presumably used to be automatic doors. When he came to a corner Duo kicked at a rock beneath his boot, sending the object flying forward and into an open pathway of dead space. There was a gravelly sound of impact, but when no alarms squealed to life nor any itchy trigger fingers enabled, Duo stepped around the sharp edge and headed across the path towards the next building in the campus.
Fuck, it was too easy. He knew it would be, he knew it from the start of the entire scheme, but the idea still sent a soft electricity through his bones. He heard the first sound of human contact three feet into the safety of the building's inky shadows. Footsteps, unmistakable, a clip of soft material- leather- against slick ground.
Duo slipped along the wall as quickly as he could staying so silent. At the corner he turned, holding a breath to peer through the night at what looked like half of a building still standing raggedly over partially tiled floor- the roof was gone and what stood left were two exterior walls to create something out of memories he still harbored from the war. It was surrounded by construction grade flood lamps and a few scattered signs denoting the Winner Corp logo and warning against trespassers. How convenient.
At its center stood a figure, a man. Duo's fists clenched to fight down the adrenaline that shot up through his veins at the sight.
The man was turned half-way from him, forty yards away, but he was still noticeable enough to strike familiarity. That sheath of white hair flowing around a thin skull, pale skin pulled over sharp bones. He was older now- even more skeletal in appearance than during the war. There were a few pinkish looking scars running up the side of his face, a chunk of ear peaking out of scar-tissue when he turned his head. But it was still undeniable.
Oh Wufei would be so pissed when he found out. The 'I told you so' played against Duo's lips just thinking about it.
And still, just to be one hundred percent, Duo reached in his pocket to retrieve the cell-phone they'd confiscated. He redialed the last- and only- number on file. Fifty yards away Quinze reached into the pocket of his jacket and glanced at the caller ID of his own phone.
Gotcha. Duo's lips twitched into a wide smile.
He got ready for the voice to come as he watched Quinze run a long finger against the screen. "What?" it snapped, uncanny as Duo observed the word leave the man's mouth a millisecond before it reached his own ear.
"How's it going?" he wondered, entirely genial.
Quinze growled. "What do you want?"
"I just thought I'd call to check up on you, pal."
"I'm going to kill you."
"Plenty have tried, but clearly no one has succeeded," Duo responded casually.
"Where are you?"
"Not about to tell you that, now am I?" Duo crooned into the phone. "Maybe I'm right behind you- or off-earth somewhere."
He watched Quinze twitch in place, looking around just to be sure. Duo fought down an internal laugh. The voice growled again in frustration. "You're here. You've been throwing gasoline bombs over my fence."
Duo couldn't stop his smile. "I don't know what you're talking about."
Quinze chose a different approach. "I'm not scared of you. Any of you."
Duo let out a rather contented sigh. "And that is going to be your biggest fucking mistake."
He hung up then, abruptly, and watched for the other man's reaction. It was limited by the distance, but Duo could see that he'd definitely ruffled some feathers. Sweet fucking revenge. Finally, they were getting somewhere.
Duo stood there then, for a long while, just watching. Quinze paced a few times and then proceeded to skirt around one of the building's remaining walls. A few seconds later the sound of an engine being revved to life startled Duo, but he stood his ground, watching as a small, military looking jeep made its way forward, turning down the path that separated himself from the oddly lit area, and sped away into the darkness.
The place must have been a lot fucking bigger than he'd though if Quinze needed a jeep to get to wherever it was he was going. Maybe to the helipad, maybe to Quatre and Trowa. Shit, Duo decided not to think about that. He considered for a moment about checking in with Heero or Wufei, but then after a tiny, internal debate, decided against it. They were busy, just as he was, and if need be they'd make the necessary contact. So in the end, his curiosity won out again.
He slunk across the pathway Quinze had just used as a makeshift road and towards the harshly lit space, the glowing light pulling him in like a moth. Duo felt for his weapons as he walked, careful to keep his eyes darting about him. He was still carrying a Glock, but the addition of a trusty flick-knife at his ankle was an effective tool in at least making him feel a bit more prepared for the unknown he was so determined to barrel into.
At first look the space seemed innocuous, much like a crumbling piece of what once was perhaps an entire three stories worth of hospital rooms should look like. But then he saw it- or rather them. Those damn fucking photographs.
He padded noiselessly along the grungy tile floor, his body being led by vision now strung straight to the structure's corner, lit in glaring white from the lamps set up near the building's mouth of an entrance. There was a table, metal with what was probably old stains of blood along its surface, and then just beyond it, past a few stools that looked clean and recently used, a ten foot tall expanse of wall covered in what he could only describe as his life.
But not just his life. Quatre's and Trowa's and Wufei's...and Heero's.
It shouldn't have surprised him, it shouldn't have sent pangs through his chest, it shouldn't have caused his lungs to stricken, it shouldn't have had any effect on him whatsoever. Most of the images he'd seen before. Some from the nice little packet he'd received back before Preventer had found him. The one of Trowa and Heero, much too close. The one of Wufei's body wrapped around his own, half-naked and tattoo-less.
He swallowed hard, unable to tear his eyes away. There were others too, probably hundreds of them, some overlapping, some larger, some smaller, taped up to the wall and just stuck there, taunting him. A photograph of Relena, Heero lurking in the shadows. Trowa after a performance on some unknown colony, still in costume. Quatre in suit and tie sitting behind a conference table, pen in hand to sign whatever proffered documents lay before him. Wufei, uniform neat and pressed, doling out orders to Preventer forces just barely younger than himself.
And there, right smack in the middle, he found himself. Younger than he was now, no scars to mar his features just yet, a shock of hawaiian shirt sticking next to him. Aboard a Sweeper vessel, bargaining, perhaps arguing; he couldn't tell, he couldn't remember. His name was written in black ink, all too familiar block lettering, just below on a measly looking square of paper pinned betwixt smaller, grainier photos. Maxwell.
He looked and found the other's names too. Beneath Quatre's there were notes scrawled in handwriting he couldn't make out. There too, beneath Heero's and Wufei's. He and Trowa were the only ones without.
Notes, data perhaps. They'd not gotten far enough along with his own double, and apparently not gotten anywhere with Trowa's. Thank God for small favors, he supposed half-heartedly before catching himself with a bite to his tongue.
The second of self-imposed pain brought him back to reality with a sharp sensation of whiplash. Duo blinked up at the photographs and stood entirely still when he heard the gun cocking at his back.
It had taken longer than he'd thought, but he was ready for it, now more than ever before.