'...' thoughts
Chordney Manor Part 5
Relena sat and watched the storm out the window of Heero's bedroom, thinking about what a mess everything had so quickly become. Just last month, she had been so excited about the prospect of this little vacation. Not only for herself, but also for the pilots, who had not really had much time to relax since Barton's uprising proved just how fragile the new peace really was. And unfortunately, at least part of that was her own fault. She had relied on them for so much that she had not allowed herself to realize the pressure she was putting on them. Add to that the pressure everyone else, not to mention themselves, were exerting and one could see just how, even at only eighteen years of age, those five were quickly headed for burnout.
But now it looked like even her attempts at relieving some of their stress was going to be ruined. Whoever had killed the ambassador knew just how to raise each of their protective instincts. Even though Duo's name had not been mentioned specifically, anyone who was present last night when Heero had practically drug the braided man, yelling and protesting through the ballroom, would have known to whom the writing had referred. Heero's own comments against the ambassador's life, intelligence, and lineage would have also guaranteed that any one seeing the murder scene would have known that the mysterious person spoken of in blood was none other than the violet-eyed ex-pilot of Deathscythe.
And now, not only were they embroiled in a murder investigation, which as Preventer agents they were practically required to act on, whether they were supposed to be on vacation or not, but they also had one of their own to watch over. There was just no way of telling what the murderer's intentions were in relation to Duo. While the words appeared to mean the person was trying to protect the young man, they also spoke of a certain level of obsession as well as mental illness, given the degree to which the body had been mutilated. Something that Relena herself was grateful to have not been privy to.
With a melancholic sigh and shake of her head, she leaned forward until her forehead rested against the cold panes of glass that separated her from the storm outside. Only a second later, a pair of slender arms wrapped around her waist just before a soft body pressed itself to her back.
"You ok?" Hilde whispered softly into her ear as the dark-haired woman nuzzled her nose along Relena's neck.
"Yeah." Relena answered just as softly. She allowed herself to settle back into her girlfriend's body, wrapping her own arms around those at her waist. "Just wish things had turned out differently."
"You can't blame yourself for this." The other woman said. She had spent enough time with Relena over the past couple years to know when the blonde was feeling that things were her fault, whether they truly were or not. "And none of the others think that either. There's no way you could have known any of this was going to happen."
"But maybe if I hadn't insisted that they come--"
"Then they would still be taking cases and nearly getting themselves killed just driving home." Duo's near accident still rankled at Hilde above all the other crazy and inane things that had happened to those five in the past several months. The very fact that it happened when he and Wufei were supposed to be safe made it all the worse.
"I know." Relena conceded. She too had her own worries. Heero had had several accidents during cases that, while minor, could have been far worse. The fact that if he had not been so exhausted in the first place, the accidents would not have happened at all was what put the planning for this month long vacation into the works. "And I guess that, with the five of them working together, they won't be tempted to work too hard."
"We can only hope." Hilde agreed before placing a soft kiss on Relena's neck.
"You know, it's not polite to whisper when in company." a deep voice called out from across the darkened room, bringing their attention back to the circumstances at hand. "Would you care to share? Maybe it would relieve some of the boredom."
Giving Relena one last squeeze, Hilde turned to where Zechs was currently sitting comfortably in one of the high back chairs on the far wall. The mischievous smirk on her face would have been a dead give away for the blonde man to prepare himself. But with the darkness of the room, he was not able to see it and was therefore not ready for the words that came from the dark-haired woman's mouth. "I was just trying to talk Lena into a quickie in the bathroom. After all, we might be here for quite a while."
"Oh god." Zechs moaned even as he slapped his hands over his ears while from behind Hilde, Relena was trying her best not to laugh. When it came to his little sister, the platinum blonde man could be quite a prude. "I so did not want to hear that."
"Well, you did ask." the dark-haired girl shot back, her face splitting into a huge smile. This was exactly what they needed to break the melancholic mood that had fallen over them ever since arriving at Heero's room. "And besides, after last month's episode, I'd think it wouldn't bother you so much anymore."
"Oh, I almost forgot about that." Relena snickered, unable to hold the laughter any longer as she remembered the incident Hilde spoke of. "I don't know who was more embarrassed, you or Cathy. But Doro did get a good laugh out of it."
"And she still does." Zechs mumbled, thinking it was all together not funny. He had only gone searching for Dorothy, who was Relena's personal assistant, in order to discuss an upcoming meeting she had scheduled when he had walked in on the two women in the billiards' room. "Since when are those two together anyways?"
"Oh Zechs, you really don't pay much attention to what's going on around you, do you?" Relena sighed.
"Yeah, jeez, they've been together for over a year now." Hilde added with a shake of her head. "And the billiard table has always been their favorite place to--"
"Enough." the blonde man bellowed, standing from his chair and heading for the door. "I need some fresh air."
"But Zechs," Relena called as his hand reached for the doorknob. "It's raining outside and besides, you promised to stay with us."
"Right now, fresh air constitutes an area without a certain L2 salvage rat." Zechs said in his best haughty tone. "In other words, I'll be in the hall."
With that said, the tall Preventer opened the door and stepped into the hallway, pulling the door firmly shut behind him. The minute the door snicked closed, Hilde busted out laughing while her girlfriend simply shook her head. Coming from most anyone else, such a comment about Hilde would have sent both women into a blind rage, but during the last several months since their relationship had begun, Hilde and Zechs had come to appreciate each other's biting whit. Now, those comments were made purely in fun and neither took the other very seriously. In fact, the two of them acted more like brother and sister than he and Relena, but she was not complaining. Things could be a lot worse.
********************
"Do you even know where we are?" Duo whined as he stood close to Heero's side and examined the current intersection they found themselves at. They had been wandering around in the huge house for what felt like hours, trying to find the kitchen, and as of yet they had had no luck.
"You're the one with the flawless navigational skills, remember? Why don't you know where we are?" Heero bit back, earning him a glare before Duo turned away and huffed. "That's what I thought. Now come on."
Duo only hesitated for a moment, watching Heero walk down yet another nondescript hallway before sighing softly and started after him. He did not know why he was being so snappy since under normal circumstances, he would be relishing in just being alone with Heero. But he just could not seem to get the chill that had settled into his stomach since finding the ambassador's mutilated body that morning to leave. It did not help either that he just could not shake the feeling that he was being watched. It was that feeling that caused him to hurry his steps to catch up with his dark-haired friend, who happened to be the only one to remember to grab a lamp before leaving the dining room. While not normally afraid of the dark, he made an exception for this house.
As it turned out, luck was finally with them as they reached the end of the hall not two minutes later to find a large swinging door. And on the other side, the very kitchen they had been searching for.
"Thank god." Duo breathed once the swinging door had closed behind them. "I was beginning to think we'd be lost in this house forever."
"We still have to find our way back." Heero reminded him, as the blue-eyed man walked across the room toward what he thought was the refrigerator. Grabbing the handle of one oversized door, he pulled it open to peer inside.
"Don't remind me." the braided man moaned and moved to stand behind his best friend. "Pretty slim pickins." he noted curiously, taking stock of the rather bare shelves that confronted them. "How in the hell were they planning on feeding all these guests for a month without any food?"
"That's a good question." Heero said absentmindedly before allowing the door to swing shut again. There were many things about the house and circumstances that were just not adding up for him, the empty refrigerator just another on the list.
"Well, let's check out the pantry." Duo offered as he turned toward where he had seen the double doors leading to said room when they had entered. "Maybe everything they have is dry goods or just hasn't been delivered yet. All they had last night was hors d'oeuvres anyway."
"Maybe." Heero mumbled sounding unconvinced but he still moved with the violet-eyed man toward the pantry doors. Unfortunately, what lay on the other side only raised more questions. The room itself was huge, so much so that from the door, the light of the lamp could not penetrate all the way to the back wall. But even with the low light, it was easy to see that the shelves were mostly bare; a few cans of dehydrated soups and vegetables grouped close to the door were the only fare in sight.
"Oh man, you've got to be kidding me." the longhaired young man exclaimed as he pressed further into the room, turning first one way and then the other. "They have to have something to eat. What were they going to feed us for breakfast?"
"Perhaps they hadn't intended too." Heero offered dryly while he too checked further into the pantry. He managed to discover a few more cans and a few boxes of obviously stale crackers, but that was all.
"Dammit Heero, I'm starving here." Duo moaned. "I need something to eat."
For a long moment, Heero stood stock still in the back of the room and, thinking he was being ignore, which was quite normal for the blue-eyed man, Duo turned back toward the kitchen with a sigh. He figured if he was resourceful, he might be able to throw something together from the stuff in the fridge to keep him for a little while. Just before he reached the door though, Heero's voice stopped him in his tracks.
"I think I have enough here to make soup and sandwiches." he offered softly, causing Duo to spin back around in surprise and not a little shock. Heero was actually offering to cook for him? He threw the shock off quickly though before the dark-haired man decided to change his mind.
"Are you sure this stuff's safe to eat?" he asked as he waved a hand at the cans.
"The soup's condensed and the loaf of bread and deli meats I saw in the refrigerator looked fairly fresh."
Duo gave a gusty sigh at the other young man's explanation, not really knowing why he was pressing the point and simply turned back to the kitchen with the intention of retrieving the items from the refrigerator. "I guess that's the best we can do." he said as he exited the pantry. "Besides, it's not like I haven't eaten much worse in my life."
Those few words, spoken in a bitter yet flippant tone caused Heero's heart to twist painfully in his chest. While he was not privy to the complete story of Duo's life prior to their meeting in the first Eve War, he did know a few things that he had picked up on during their time spent together. That Duo had been an orphan, growing up on the streets of L2 was standard knowledge for him. He had, after all, hacked into the doctor's files on the other pilots as soon as he found out they existed. The other information, sketchy details about those cold, lonely, and dangerous days on the street as well as a brief overview of his time at the Maxwell church, he had put together from the bits of information Duo let drop during various conversations over the years. Each scrap of his life he allowed to escape, the dark-haired man would grab onto and lock away safely in his mind, slowly building a picture of the man who had stolen his heart many years ago.
"So, about that soup and sandwich." Duo called just before his head popped back inside the pantry with a huge grin splitting his face. The reappearance was enough to break Heero from his introspection and with a sharp nod, he reached out to grab two cans from the shelves before following Duo back toward the kitchen.
********************
It was a nearly two hour later before they made it back to the dining room. After finding relatively clean bowls and plates, as well as a can opener and cooking utensils, it had been easy to put the small meal together. Luckily, the house used gas for its range instead of electricity so heating the soup was little or no problem. Once their meals were prepared, they had sat at the tall table situated in the middle of the room to eat, Heero in his normally efficient mode, while Duo chatted about anything and everything that came to mind. When they were finished, they placed their dishes in the sink to be cleaned once the electricity returned before Duo suggested making a few more sandwiches for the others. It did not take much time to prepare the food, which they piled up on another plate then they headed back through the quiet and dark house.
"Hey Fei." Duo called as they came through one of the sets of doors that led to the room. "We brought you something to eat."
A soft snort from beyond the long table greeted his declaration before the issuer stood, giving them a long-suffering look. "You mean there was actually something left once you'd finished, Maxwell?"
Blowing his partner a raspberry, Duo walked over to place the food on the table, detouring at the last minute as he remembered exactly what had been on that table earlier. "I'll have you know there wasn't that much food to start with." he snipped as he placed the food on one of the smaller tables that bordered the room, holding potted plants and expensive looking pieces of art.
"Likely excuse." Wufei sniffed, but the smile on his face betrayed his words and brought an answering one from the braided young man.
"Actually, he's right." Heero interjected. "The kitchen was practically bare."
At those words, the smile fell from Wufei's lips and with a deepening frown marking his face, the Chinese Preventer gave his two returning friends a worried look. "Why would they not have any food available when they knew they were having this many people staying here?" he asked, echoing Duo's words from earlier.
"That's what I want to know." the braided man agreed. "It just doesn't make any sense."
"Most everything that's happened today hasn't made any sense." Heero said before turning toward Wufei. "Did you find anything while we were gone?"
"No." Wufei answered with a confused shake of his head. "With the shape we found the body and hands in, I would've expected some sort of evidence left behind, even something small. If not, then we should've found evidence of the site being cleaned. There's just nothing here other than what we found on the table and wall."
"So what now?" Duo asked in a soft voice and the other two turned to find him staring at the empty table. There was a far away look in his eyes that caused Wufei to immediately regret some of the words he had used, realizing as he did that they probably sent the braided man's mind back to that morning and the gruesome scene he had walked in on. It was Heero however, that finally answered.
"We go back to the room and tell the others about what we've found."
"Don't you mean what we didn't find?" the braided man returned before pulling his gaze from the table toward the other two. Instantly he noted the worried look in his partner's eyes and was quick to give the black-haired man a small smile. But it was the look on Heero's face that caused him to pause. For a brief moment, he had thought he had seen something warm and caring shining in those deep blue eyes; something distinctly more than what a friend would show. It was gone before he could fully recognize and appreciate it though, but the possibility it gave him, sent a thrill through his mind.
"Come on." Heero said then, turning and heading for the door with the lamp still gripped in his hand. "It's getting late anyways."
"The others are probably hungry as well." Wufei agreed as he too picked up one of the other lamps, leaving Duo to grab the tray of sandwiches and follow behind them.
"Too bad they didn't have anything to drink." Duo sighed. "These sandwiches would've been better with something to wash them down with."
"Water from the tap should be sufficient." his black-haired partner said, glad that at least that had not been lost along with the electricity.
"Yeah, I guess."
********************
When they arrived back at Heero's room only a few minutes later, they were enthusiastically greeted by those waiting within. Once they explained that nothing had been found in the room though, the questions died down and everyone sat in quiet to finish their impromptu dinner. As it was, with the small fare it did not take long and once everyone was finished, then talk began of retiring for the night. Beth and Dawn were first to leave, with Wufei escorting them back to their rooms. It had not been an easy decision of who would walk with them since both women had insisted that their prospective dates should be the one. A dark glare from Heero though, after they had been arguing for several minutes, sent them both from the room with the Chinese Preventer without another word. This then left Zechs to see that Relena and Hilde reached their own room. Only once they had all gone, did Duo announce his own intentions to returning to his room.
"Very well." Heero said and to the braided man's amazement, he began to pack his things back into his suitcase.
"Heero, what are you doing?"
"I'm taking my things with me."
"To where?"
"Your room."
"Why?" Duo asked, his eyes narrowed in silent warning to his best friend who simply ignored it as he usually did.
"Until the killer has been apprehended, you are not to be left alone."
"What?! Dammit Heero, I'm just as capable of taking care of myself as you are. I don't need a fucking babysitter."
In the next instant, before his words had even died down in the room, Duo found himself slammed into the wall beside the door; Heero forearm pressed deeply into the front of his throat, cutting off a large portion of the braided man's air. Even without the arm pressed into him though, he would not have found himself able to breath or move as Heero glared darkly into his eyes.
"I never said you couldn't take care of yourself." the man practically hissed, his agitation showing in the sheer emotions he had allowed to escape his control. "I know very well that you're more than capable, except when you don't allow yourself to think about the situation. You're in a room by yourself, as am I. We're the only two people in this house that don't share a room with someone else. This puts us at a disadvantage since it's better to have someone near to watch your back in these types of situations. Something I know you'd see if you'd shut up and think about it."
For a brief moment, Heero watched as those violet eyes flashed in anger at his words and he could just see the other man preparing to strike back at him. But just as soon as it appeared, it was gone and he felt Duo relax beneath his hands, allowing him to pull back as well. Once he released him completely, he watched with some amusement as the longhaired Preventer ducked his head before giving him a sheepish smile from behind his long bangs.
"You're right. I guess I'm just being oversensitive about what happened earlier." he said softly but Heero merely shook his head.
"Are we staying in your room or mine?" the dark-haired man asked.
Duo only gave it a moment's thought before laughing softly. "Yours I guess." he answered. "To be honest, I'm not exactly sure where mine is right now."
To this Heero could only snort. "For someone who can know exactly where they are in the world without looking at a map, the fact that you can't seem to navigate this house is beyond strange."
"Tell me about it." Duo laughed. "I just don't get it; I've never felt this mixed up about a place before in my life."
"Well, lucky for you it doesn't seem to be affecting me." Heero shot at him before reaching over to pull the door open. "We'll go get some of your stuff at least. The rest we'll get tomorrow."
"Ok." the violet-eyed man agreed. "And, um, Heero? Thanks."
"No need to thank me Duo, it's what friends are for."
********************
As the hour was approaching midnight, Edward found himself moving silently through the secret passageway that would lead him to the room the young man with the long hair was currently staying it. There were not that many of these passages in the old house and only one located on the second floor. It was no coincidence that the young man had been giving one of the only two bedchambers with entrances to the passage.
Nearing the end of the dark walk, he came to what appeared to be a solid wall. With deft movements, he douse the sole candle he had brought to light his way and then paused briefly to allow his eyes to adjust once again to the darkness. Then with a soft push to the walls far left side, he watched as it slowly and silently swung open a crack, allowing him to peer cautiously into the dark room before he pushed it open further to admit him to the bed chamber that lay beyond. At first, he could sense nothing amiss, but as he moved further into the room, heading directly for the large bed, he realized that there were no sounds to be heard in the room. Upon reaching the bed, he realized why. It was empty and looked as if it had not been touched since it had been made that morning.
For a long moment, the servant froze in place, staring blankly at the empty bed. His master had charged him with retrieving the man who, by this hour, should be sleeping soundly but was nowhere to be found. Refusing to give up on his instructions just yet, he moved around the room, checking the attached bath as well as all the chairs and other spaces the man could be, but still coming up with nothing. Just as he was headed for the door to the hallway to perhaps search the man out, he heard voices, which seemed to be growing closer.
Moving quickly, he reentered the secret passage and pulled the opening closed just as he heard the door to the bedchamber open. Being very careful, he leaned against the wall separating him from the room and pressed his ear to the surface. On the other side, the voices were quite low but he could still make out that two people were now in the room. One being the young man he was looking for, the other being his dark-haired friend. As they talked, he listened as closely as he could and what he heard had his eyes opened wide in surprise and not a little worry. The master would not be pleased with this development.
It did not take long before they once again left the room and, knowing it was finally safe to move, Edward turned back down the passageway and hurried back to find his master. When he burst from the passageway not five minutes later, he found Gregory Chordney putting the final touches on the room they had planned to keep the braided man in. But at seeing his servant's wide eyes and empty hands, the man stopped and turned more fully to look at him.
"What happened?" he demanded.
"He wasn't there Master." Edward stated and seeing the darkness enter those ice blue eyes at his declaration, he continued quickly, "When I arrived, the room was empty. But then, as I was going to search for him, I heard him and the dark-haired one coming down the hall. I hid and listened to them. They were gathering some of his things to move him to the other man's room. From what I could tell, he will not be coming back to his room except to gather the remainder of his things tomorrow."
For several long moments, Gregory simply stood by the side of the bed, staring at his servant. Then, with a deep growl, he turned and ripped the carefully made cover from it, throwing it across the room.
"How dare he?" he bellowed in rage. "I will not allow this. He cannot possibly think to protect Duo. Only I can. And if he thinks I'm blind to the way he looks at him, he's more stupid than I thought. I will not allow Duo to remain with him; with any of them."
Finally calming somewhat as he made that final statement and decision, he turned back to this servant; his eyes glowing softly in the darkness of the room. "Tomorrow, I want you to be prepared. She cannot keep this storm going for very much longer and once it's died out and before the power returns, we will separate him from the others."
"But how Master?"
"Leave that to me." Gregory said, a dark smile twisting his lips. "Leave it all to me."
TBC...
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