Author's note: Hi guys, apologies for the delay. I'm finding these few chapters immensely difficult to write and I can just feel the onset of a writer's block coming on again! Damn! :( Hope it passes quickly… And it's not helping that I'm preparing for a couple of exams that are coming up soon, so, bear with me, guys! And it's been quite a long while since I did a shout out to my dear readers. Don't think I've forgotten you! Many, many, many thanks to Sora555, Seiba Artoria, Mobile-Suits0605, AAA, FTS-Peace, hardcoreGSfan, October Lynx, moi and PinkSugarDust! Thank you all for the support and the reviews!

To those wondering just when Kira is going to recognise Athrun, Cagalli and Lacus, let me drop you a hint, the encounter between Kira and Orga's team is gonna be a major turning point! So look out for it, and the explosive 'reunion' is gonna come next!

And to answer AAA's question, as to whether Rau has them randomly kidnapped or targeted based on potential, I'll have to say I'm still thinking and working on it. Whatever works best for this fanfic, I guess. Right now, I'm kinda going for potential, but we'll see.

To all who are wondering why Lacus did not recognise Kira when they were dancing, I was working on the assumption that you wouldn't recognise someone whom you haven't seen in many years. Especially if you least expect him to turn up. But now that she happens to see hints and clues about Kira's identity, I thought it would open up such a possibility to Lacus. Hmm… I do hope this makes sense…

Chapter 60

Flay found herself an empty booth and slid in, plopping down onto the hard plastic seat, feeling the exhaustion deep in her bones and the ache in her feet. Lunch hour had slipped away before she even knew it. There were only two or three customers left in the greasy spoon and they were all sitting at separate tables, heads down as they concentrated on eating. One had his head buried behind the newspapers. Flay snuck a glance at it and saw the usual notice – the section boxed up in the middle, amidst the rest of the headliners; the beautifully-chiselled face with that astounding pink hair and that mesmerizing smile to match. The call-out to the public for any information on the missing actress and singer.

Flay looked away quickly and took a deep breath. God, who would believe it if she told them that she had Lacus Clyne in her apartment? She wrung the rag she was holding in her hands, twisting it hard, venting her frustration on the cloth.

Imagining it was Kira's neck that she was twisting.

What the hell was Kira thinking, bringing her here?

One of the customers called out and she lifted her head. He was pointing at his empty cup. "Got it," she nodded, already easing her lithe body out of the booth and heading for the bar counter. The coffee sat warming in the coffee machine, releasing curls of steam with a fresh, bitter aroma. She slid the pot out of its stand and turned just in time to see the door swing inwards. The bell atop the door tinkled merrily.

"Welcome," Flay smiled, "Take a seat. Be with you in a-" Her voice faded into silence as she stared at her newest patron. It was a woman, in a grey gabardine trenchcoat, tied neatly at her waist by the belt. Around her neck was a knitted scarf. Her hair was all bundled up on her head and hidden under a handkerchief of pale pink silk, and her eyes were hidden behind a pair of large sunglasses. She looked a little overdressed, but Flay figured that it was cold outside. The radiator in the diner was growling loudly and the diner was warm, but outside, the chill had set in. Still Flay stared, because the woman looked oddly familiar, and so did the clothes she was wearing.

And then she nearly dropped the pot of coffee as the woman tipped the glasses and exposed cerulean eyes.

By god, it was Lacus Clyne!

"Uh, I'll be with you in a sec," Flay stumbled over her sentence, then hastened over to the waiting customer. She had to make an effort to still her trembling hands, so that she wouldn't spill coffee all over the table and into the lap of the diner. Damn it, Lacus Clyne was in her restaurant! Could anything else get worst? If anyone recognised her, she and Sai would find themselves facing prison walls for the rest of their lives. And Kira too. And of course, there were things that were much worse than prison… God, what the hell was the woman thinking?

She filled the cup, made sure the rest of the customers too had their fair share, then dumped the coffee pot back into the coffee machine on the counter. Feeling as if her nerves were shot by lightning, she hurried back to Lacus' side. The pink-haired celebrity had taken a seat in the booth farthest away from the entrance, a corner hidden in the shadows and away from the windows. She still had the large sunglasses on, and Flay recognised them as her own.

She slid into the booth after her and just stared, wide-eyed, until she couldn't help shaking her head in miserable despair. "What in the world are you doing here?" she hissed softly, bending across the aluminium table to get closer.

"I want to talk," said Lacus Clyne. Her voice was firm and determined, with a sure confidence that matched her calm demeanour. Flay recognized it as the persona Lacus Clyne had whenever she went on stage, or faced the press and the cameras – always so calm, collected and measured, with a hint of a smile touching her lips. Ever the beautiful star.

"What?" She replied hastily. It came out a little rude, but Flay figured that this was no time for niceties. "What's wrong? Did something happen?"

Lacus shook her head. "No. It's just that I really need to talk to you and Sai, but there hasn't been much chance to do so. I know I shouldn't have come to the diner – you're busy enough without having to deal with me – but there are some questions I really need to ask, some answers I really need to know. I had to come. And I'm sorry, I went through your closet for the coat, the scarves and the sunglasses. I'll wash and return them back to you as good as new."

"Forget the clothes," Flay said, "You shouldn't have come at all. You have any idea what's going to happen when someone recognises you? What you need to do is to go home!"

Again, Lacus shook her head. "I need to talk." Her cerulean eyes were hidden behind the black glass, but Flay saw the set of her lips, the slight tightening of her jaw which told her that Lacus wasn't going to leave until she got what she wanted. Damn. Flay had a feeling she knew what Lacus Clyne wanted to know. It was exactly what she and Sai had been trying to avoid by leaving the apartment early and returning late. But Lacus Clyne was such a persistent woman who didn't seem to take 'no' as an answer. Was there no way to avoid her?

"Fine. Okay," Flay gave in, slumping backwards into her seat, "What do you want to talk about?"

To her annoyance, Lacus settled back into her seat too, looking pleased that her efforts had paid off. "I want to know about the man who brought me here. My kidnapper."

"I don't know much. In fact, I hardly know him at all." A quick, careless answer.

"Kira. That's his name, isn't it?" Lacus persisted. She leaned forward across the table, intruding into Flay's personal space, resolutely mounting on the pressure, "Kira Hibiki?"

"No," Flay rapped out. But she was too late. Lacus had already caught on to the uneasy pause before she replied. Flay Allster definitely knew something about him.

"Or is it Kira Yamato?"

The expression on Flay's face shifted. "No," she said again. Now, Lacus saw something different in her response. A slight softening at the edge of her eyes and facial features, as if she seemed a little bit relieved. Why? Lacus felt disappointment stirring in her. Could that mean that she was getting farther from the truth? Did that mean that he wasn't at all the Kira she knew?

But she had been so sure, so certain that he was the one.

"Tell me the truth, Flay," she whispered, "please. I'm not going to get you or Sai into trouble. I won't get Kira into trouble either. I promise. It's just-" She hesitated, wondering if she ought to tell Flay about the Kira she knew, the Kira she wanted him to be. Judging from the impatient look on Flay's face, she decided it was the only way to convince Flay that she had no ill intentions. She began to tell the story about Kira's disappearance. About the boy who had disappeared from her life as quickly as lightning streaks across the sky. She gave Flay the summarized version, and related her own suspicions about her kidnapper's identity. Tried to make Flay see that she wasn't going to rat Kira out to the police. That all she wanted to do was to find Kira Yamato again, to fill up that missing gap she had always felt in her life.

When she was done, she was met with a look of discomfort. Flay was chewing on her bottom lip. A little frown creased her brow. "I understand." Her shoulders lifted in a noncommittal shrug, "I wish I could help you. I really do, but… there isn't much I can tell you."

"All I want is the truth, Flay, please."

There was no response from Flay.

"I know I'm asking a lot. Why don't I just ask you the questions and you can nod, or shake your head?"

Again, no response.

Lacus plunged in nonetheless. "Does he have family?"

For a second, there was nothing and Flay just looked at her thoughtfully. And then, her head shook once, tilting to the right just slightly, but it was unmistakable.

"So he doesn't have a sister? Have you heard him mentioning any sister?"

A shake of the head.

"Does he… does Kira have brown hair?"

A pause, then a tentative nod.

The disappointment in Lacus faded almost instantly, replaced by an earnest hope that swelled like a bubble. Some part of her mind mused at how delicate the bubble's surface was, how a feather-light touch could splinter the kaleidoscopic shine. How absolutely fragile her hope was, how easily broken. But damn, she wanted to know. She wanted to know so bad. Fingers crossed, Lacus sat up straight in her seat. "What about his eye colour?"

There was no reply. Flay just stared at her. Lacus felt her heart sink, and she Lacus realised her mistake and amended her question quickly. "Is Kira's eye colour purple? The colour of amethyst stones?"

This time, she got a nod from Flay. And Lacus knew then and there that she had got the answer she wanted to hear.

Athrun winced as Cagalli probed the wound at the back of his head. He wasn't bleeding, but it sure hurt as hell, and Athrun figured he was having a mild concussion. But he shook his head and pulled free of Cagalli's searching fingers. "I'm fine," he said, trying to sound soothing, as he turned around and pulled Cagalli down beside him.

They settled down together, side-by-side, wedged in a tight corner - a cement cocoon – underneath a stone bridge in a deserted park. The stone bridge was arched and low, so both of them had to sit with their heads down to avoid bumping into the cement overhang. Shrubs, bushes and vines grew in a wild mess, swamping over the stone architecture like they were devouring it. The park was located several blocks away from their motel and it was unkempt and untended to. Befitting of the run-down, shabby neighbourhood they were in.

There was a break in the shrubbery and Athrun gazed out beyond the cross-linked fence bordering the park, at the small road laid out beside it. It was a narrow two-way street, at the back of a row of stores. A line of vehicles, mostly vans and some dirt-filthy sedans, stood still silent along one side of the road, which made the two-way street become a one-way.

There was no one about, despite the fact that it was way past noon. Most of the crowd and the action were on the main road. Which was perfect, because Athrun had his eyes set on one of the cars and he didn't need witnesses for what he was about to do next.

"What the hell's happening, Athrun?"

He turned his head to see Cagalli with her knees pulled up close to her chest and her arms wrapped around her shins. Her face was huddled behind her knees, so that she was peering over them at him with wide eyes, the blonde hair framing her face beautifully. "Who in the world could those people be, Athrun?" Her voice trembled a little at the end and Athrun recalled how she had burst out of the toilet, firing wildly to distract the intruders. The bravado had dissipated with the adrenalin. The guilt descended on Athrun like a tonne of bricks, as if the stone arch they were sitting under had suddenly collapsed on him. It wasn't easy, he knew, to pull the trigger of a gun when you didn't know how to and you had no intention of killing somebody. But he had made her fire twice. Put her through the fear two times, and both times had been to save his ass. Shit.

He reached out with some difficulty, pushing aside the stray branches around them, so that he could put his arm around Cagalli's shoulders and draw her close. Said nothing, just sat close, revelling in each other's closeness. They hadn't had time to relax at all over the past few days, pressured as they were to find out all they could about DEX enterprises, Le Creuset Corporation and Kira's disappearance. Athrun glanced over at the papers stacked up on the dirt ground, just inches away from their feet. Cagalli had zipped them up in her jacket when they escaped. They were too important to leave behind, but now, Athrun toed them farther away with the tip of his shoe, determined to put them out of their minds if only for a second.

"What in the world did they want with us? With you?" Cagalli whispered.

"I don't know."

A pause.

"So what do we do now?"

"First, we need to get away from here," Athrun said. He glanced over at the parked vehicles again. Still no sign of anyone. The black sedan he was eyeing was still there, unmoved. "Come on."

He scrambled to his feet, felt his head throb earnestly in protest and watched as Cagalli replaced the papers inside her jacket and zipped it up close to her neck. He checked the gun he had in his hand, the one he had snatched from the intruder. It was a Glock, with a full clip in it. The serial number was scratched. Untraceable. He tucked it into his waistband and hid it from view by adjusting his jacket.

Leading the way, he fought through the undergrowth until they came up to the fence. "Can you climb?" He muttered, glancing down both ends of the road that lay on the other side of the chain fence to check if the road was clear. It was.

Cagalli eased her right foot through the gaps in the fence and tested her grip. "Yeah," she nodded.

With a boost from Athrun, she scaled the fence, swung herself over the top – which was thankfully free of barbed wire – and jumped to the ground on the other side. The impact sent a jolt of lightning through her ankle and her shin and she fell hard onto one knee. "Shit," she cursed as the pain ebbed and flowed.

A shadow descended and Athrun dropped neatly beside her. "You alright?" The concern in his voice made Cagalli smile despite the ache in her knee. "Yeah, just bruised." Athrun nodded and pulled her to her feet. He couldn't stop himself from checking her over to make sure she was unhurt. If she had been hurt scaling the fence, it would be another nail into the coffin of his guilt. But she was fine, and she brushed him off with a dismissing wave of her hand.

They stole across the empty road and he left her to stand guard, while he lifted the hood of the black sedan.

"You ever considered not being a policeman?" Cagalli whispered, glancing at his deft fingers dancing swiftly across the machinery, loosening bolts and crossing wires. She shifted her gaze to the surrounding area, scanning diligently. No one on the right. No one on the left. No one behind. Perfect. "You would make a great car-thief, or a burglar," she muttered, "You'll probably be a great assassin too, if you wanted to be one."

The hood shut with a click and Athrun rounded the car to the driver's side. Cagalli followed and watched as he crouched and began to pick at the lock with the tools he had in his jacket pocket. She glanced up again at the road. Right, then left. Searching for any signs of witnesses. No one about.

The lock snapped apart and Athrun swung open the door with a grin. "Well," he laughed softly, "I don't know if that's a compliment, but when you need to chase down criminals, you have to mix with the likes of them." He slid into the car and disappeared into the foot-well underneath the steering wheel. Cagalli heard his grunts as he struggled to pry open the access cover. Then a flash of his hands as he began to strip the wires and hotwire the car.

Cagalli looked down the road again. Made sure there was no one sneaking up on them.

A dreadful, nerve-wrecking ten minutes passed, with Athrun cursing under his breath as he stroked the wires together. Cagalli glanced repeatedly at her watch, but realised that she was too nervous to really be looking at the time. There was still no one about. And then, the engine revved up with a loud growl.

"Yes!" Athrun backpedalled his way out from the foot-well and slipped behind the wheel. "Come on, come on." He waved Cagalli over to the other side of the car and bent across the passenger seat to unlock the door.

"Where're we heading?" Cagalli asked as she strapped herself in.

"We need to find out more about how Le Creuset Corporation might be involved in this mess," Athrun muttered thoughtfully. He glanced at Cagalli. "And to do that, we need to talk to Siegel Clyne."

Foot down hard on the accelerator, they took off in the stolen car.

The GPS coordinates Kira had received from Rau's tech guys were for a small hotel situated along the border of the city. Where the hustle-bustle of offices and neat neighbourhoods began to fade into dusty worn down streets, filthy alleys and rigid brick buildings.

He was parked two blocks away from it in a dark blue, unmarked van and blended in perfectly with the neighbourhood. He had his binoculars trained on the front door of the hotel and the laptop beside him showed footage from the security camera in the lobby.

"Any sign of them?" He asked.

There was a pause and he heard Auel's voice in his right ear, emitted from his earpiece. "The curtains are drawn and the lights are off. But I can still see some movement in there." His teammate was positioned in the building opposite the street with his binoculars trained on the sixth window of the fifth floor.

"Okay."

Silence fell again as he went back to watching the front entrance of the hotel, glancing at the computer monitor occasionally. All clear.

He heard the back door of the van open and close quietly. Stellar scurried across the metal floor and slid into the passenger seat without a word. She reached for his binoculars and thrust a sandwich into his hand in one swift motion. Kira settled back into his seat with his sandwich and left her to continue with the surveillance. Glancing down at his watch, he noted the time. It was 5.34 p.m. Outside, the sky was darkening. A pale blue mixing with the grey of the oncoming night. It was good. The night had always been the perfect cover for their missions. Darkness was a useful tool for people like them, people who lived and thrived in the shadows. But, Kira reflected, it wasn't going to be much help in a high-risk mission such as the one they were embarking on.

This mission was different from the rest he had encountered. Kira thought about it as he ate his sandwich and washed it down with the bottle of water Stellar had bought. In all the missions he had been involved in, they were always at the top of the food chain. They hunted unsuspecting prey – victims who were inferior in all aspects. Their usual prey lacked skill, ability, intellect and malicious intent. Prey like that was easy to kill. But this time, they were hunting predators – people who too shared a similar status at the top of the food chain. They were not vulnerable quarries waiting to be devoured; they were constantly on guard, always alert, ready to fight back tooth and nail to save their own lives, because they had killed enough people to know what it was like to lose.

It was hunter versus hunter and Kira knew it wouldn't be an easy match. Someone would eventually be downgraded to prey. To stay in the game, his team would have to plan every step ahead and cover all grounds. No mistakes allowed.

Kira tossed the packaging of his sandwich into a plastic bag and was just gulping down the rest of the bottled water when he heard the sharp intake of breath through his earpiece. He was already grabbing the spare binoculars from the glove compartment before Auel could say a thing. "I think they're on the move. The shadows in the room have disappeared but it's too dark. I can't be sure. Keep a look out, guys."

Sting took over the line, "The back is all clear so far."

"We've got the front covered." Stellar replied.

Seconds ticked by in silence. Kira was aware that he was holding his breath and he forced himself to let it out slowly. It was crucial to stay calm. He made an effort to slow the beating of his heart. Like a panther stalking his prey – slow and easy.

"There's no sign of them," Stellar muttered, biting her lip.

Kira didn't reply. He was busy running the various possibilities through his mind. Would the targetsemerge together? His bet was that they would. They would stick together. Sure, that would gain unnecessary attention and leave more traces and clues along the way but they knew that they wouldn't stand a chance if they were alone. They functioned better as a team and trusted each other to watch their backs. You had to trust your teammate if you were constantly risking your life in dangerous missions. And Kira understood this because he always looked out for his own team and trusted his partners in crime to do the same for him. So his guess was that they wouldn't split.

He was proven right when he saw them emerge from the front door of the hotel. All four of them – three men and a woman - clustered together.

He recognised them right away. There was no way he would forget how Orga Sabnak looked.

Orga was the first to exit from the large glass doors of the hotel. Lime-green hair, eyes hidden behind sunglasses. He stopped on the sidewalk and glanced up and down the street. His eyes fell on the unmarked van they were sitting in and paused long enough to make Kira uncomfortable, then moved on again to scan the area. Apparently deeming it safe, he turned his head to whisper something to his teammates. For a second, they remained clustered together, and then they separated and headed down the street in different directions, without a backward glance.

The chase was on.