'...' thoughts
Chordney Manor Part 8
The ballroom was lit by what could only be a hundred lamps and candles, giving the whole room a romantic and ethereal atmosphere. Especially when you took into account the guests who were milling about between the tables and buffet lines in their extravagant clothing; the women's skirts flowing around them in swishes of satin and silk and the men prancing dandily about in their coats and vests. All in all, it was a surreal setting that the group walked in on and for a moment, they could only stop and stare.
"Oh," Quatre breathed. "I feel like we've walked into an old movie."
It was a sentiment shared by them all, but since most of them had only enjoyed one, small meal the day before, the gnawing of hunger soon became too much to ignore and they moved forward, mingling into the crowd. First thing first, they grabbed one of the larger, round tables that had enough seats for all of them, and then they headed straight for the buffet tables located in front of the tall windows leading to the patio. The curtains had been pulled over the windows that morning in order to spare the guests the sight of the storm still raging outside; only the brightest of the lightening flashes managed to slip past them and then, only barely.
For the first ten minutes of their stay in the ballroom, it was a pleasant change of pace from being stuck in their rooms and they each allowed themselves the moment to forget about the events of the previous day and just enjoy each others' company. But it was not to stay so relaxed and nearly half an hour later the beauty of the environment had finally worn itself out. By then, they had been pelted from nearly everyone in the room, each one demanding an explanation for one thing or another, from the continuation of the game to the power and phones being out. And Relena was finding it harder and harder to keep her pleasant smile as the simpering mob continued to descend upon them.
Finally making an escape during one of the brief lulls as Hilde's snarls managed to send the other guests into retreat; she whispered a quick explanation in her girlfriend's ear before heading for the double doors at the large room's south end. She only paused briefly at the doors to grab one of the lamps that rest to the side before slipping from the room and almost instantly wallowing in the reduced noise and lack of bodies pressing into her personal space. She had only been outside for a little over a minute when Dawn also slipped from the doors, peering behind her as she went, obviously making sure that no one followed.
"Is something wrong, Dawn?" the Vice Prime Minister asked. Due to all the delegates and ambassador's monopolizing her time during breakfast, she had not had the opportunity to speak to the two women concerning her intentions in regards to Heero and Duo. And now, at seeing the worried look on the dark-haired woman's face, she did not think is would be a good time to bring it up.
"I was wondering if you'd seen Beth." Dawn asked. "I lost track of her not long after we got here and I haven't been able to find her since."
"No, I can't say I've seen her." Relena answered, her own brow furrowing in thought as she tried to remember the last time she had seen the woman.
"I'm really worried Miss Relena." the other woman said, pulling her attention back. "She's been acting so strangely since last night."
"How do you mean?"
"Well, she's been saying some things that, quite frankly, make no sense whatsoever." Dawn answered. "And then there's her obsession with Duo. It's... well, it's kind of scary actually."
At the woman's words, Relena could feel her blood turn to ice in her veins. She was, after all, the one to bring the woman to the gathering and introduce her to the braided young man. Something that she was beginning to think was a big mistake. "What kind of obsession, Dawn?"
"She talks about him constantly." the woman admitted in a cracked voice. "She's even said that she didn't think Heero was good enough for him. That Heero was too cold and distance to give Duo what he needed. And when I asked her what it was that he needed, she just smiled at me." Dawn continued, her voice dropping down to a whisper. "I've never seen her smile like that."
At seeing the tears begin to form in those dark eyes, Relena immediately pulled the woman into her arms, shushing her quietly and trying to give her the reassurances she needed. But even as she did so, she thought back to that morning and the look of total terror that had encompassed Beth's face when she had burst into her room, screaming that Duo had vanished. And then, of course, she also remembered the look of hatred she had given Heero just a short while later as the man had practically laid claim to Duo in front of them all.
"Dawn," she began as she pushed the woman back so she could look her in the eyes. "I know this is difficult, you and Beth have been friends for a very long time, but do you think she might try and act on her feelings?"
"You mean would she try to take Duo away from Heero?" Dawn clarified and gave a rueful smile through her tears. "I don't think anyone could do that Miss Relena; you can just look at them to know they're in love with each other."
"Yes, that's true," Relena smiled as well before continuing. "but do you think she might do something, or at least try to do something, to Heero? Or possibly to anyone else who tries to take Duo from her? Or someone who would hurt him?"
"Oh." Dawn exclaimed, her eyes growing wide as she finally grasped Relena's meaning. "You don't think... You don't mean... The ambassador?" she finished in little more than a whisper.
"You know her better than I do." Relena stated in a soft, and what she hoped was a soothing voice, knowing as she did that the woman was close to a complete breakdown.
"I don't... She's never..." the woman stammered before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath; she could not fall apart just yet. There was simply too much on the line and while she did not like the thought of saying anything ill about her friend, she knew Relena needed to hear what little she did know. Finally, after a moment, she opened her eyes again and looked a Relena. "It is true that we've known each other since we were kids. It was even her idea to go into the acting business together and she's always the one who makes sure we get the same gigs. But I'm not so sure about just how well I know her. I mean, in all the time we've known each other, I've only ever seen her lose her temper twice and... they weren't pretty. She put another girl in the hospital once because she got the part Beth wanted. She, of course, said it was all just an accident, but the girl ended up with some bad scars on her face that pretty much ended her acting career. Only two times in all the years we've known each other though just doesn't seem right. And sometimes, I get the impression that there are a lot of things she does that I don't know about."
As the woman continued to speak, Relena could feel her fear growing. She was well aware of what lengths an obsessed person would go to obtain the object of their obsession, having experienced her own during the war with Heero. Luckily, meeting Hilde in between the two wars had cured her of hers in the way that only true love can. But now, not only did she have an obsessed woman after one of her closest friends, she also had a potentially violent and dangerous one.
She was just about to suggest they return to the ballroom to find the others and see if they had possibly seen the woman when she caught the glimmer of a light headed in their direction. One that was moving at a fairly brisk pace. With a desperate hope rising in her chest, she watched as the light came closer and closer. It was only once it was nearly ten feet away that she recognized the man leading the way and with a deep sigh, she darted forward to throw her arms around Heero, hugging him close in relief. "I was so worried." she whispered into his ear before pulling back to ask him what had taken them so long only to be cut off by Dawn's exclamation only a moment later.
"Beth, are you alright?" the dark-haired woman asked as she pulled her friend in to a tight hug. Tears were still pouring down Beth's face and had been since they had discovered Duo's disappearance. With a choked sob, she buried her face in her best friend's shoulder and clung to the other woman with everything she had.
"What happened?" Relena asked as she watched the scene between the two women unfold. She could not understand how Beth had ended up with the men since she knew for a fact that she had accompanied them to the ballroom.
"We found her not far from my room. She said she came looking for us." Heero answered, but his tone was wrong and even as she realized it, she also noticed that he had not returned her hug of only a moment before. True, it had taken quite some time following the war for the man to lose enough of his training to allow him to give and accept affection, but it had happened. The fact that he had not even given her a token hug in return made her step back further so she could look at him closely. What she found sent a chill down her spine. "Heero?"
But instead of answering, she watched as he clenched his jaw almost painfully before walking past her and into the ballroom. Unable to fathom what could have possible caused him to retreat so far inside himself again, she turned to give Wufei a questioning look. It was then that she finally noticed the absence of a certain, violet-eyed man. And with growing dread in her heart, she voiced the only question she could, "Where's Duo?"
********************
Heero could barely keep himself from turning and running back to where they had last seen Duo. All through the walk to the ballroom, he had to continuously holding himself back; and Beth's whining and crying definitely did not help in the least. Not to mention the slow pace they had had to assume since her high heels would not allow her to walk much faster. But as they finally drew closer to the ballroom, he was able to firm his resolve, knowing as he did that they need only find the others and then they could continue the search.
He was not however prepared to see Relena and Dawn standing just outside the doors to the room. And when the blonde woman, who had become one of his closest and dearest friends since the end of the war, pulled him close in a tight embrace, he could feel his control slipping as the anguish began to surface once again. With ruthless efficiency, he shoved it down, since it would not help him or Duo; in fact, it could only hinder the search. For Relena's sake though, he bore it for as long as he could. It was the sound of fear in her voice when she called his name only a second later that pushed him beyond that limit. And shaking off her concern with a coldness that, if he had been in his right mind, would have frightened even him, he walked by her and headed for the large room where reinforcements waited.
As he passed through the elegant double doors, his mind began to go over planning strategies that would allow them to cover the most ground as efficiently as possible, even as his eyes scanned the crowd for the others. He knew he would have a lot to explain when they found out that he had managed to lose the violet-eyed man and he was fully prepared to take all the blame for it. After all, it had been his plea that made Duo stay behind, which, now that he thought about it, had been a very bad idea. He would accept their censure for what it was but he would not allow it to delay him in returning as quickly as possible; Duo's life may depend on it.
He had only taken a few steps into the room though when he found his attention caught by an altogether different target; one that effectively blocked all thoughts of the search in a haze of pure rage. Because instead of seeing his friends, the ones he had specifically come looking for, he found Gregory Chordney. Before he could even gave his actions any thought, Heero found himself moving across the room like a juggernaut through a rice paper house. Those lucky enough to see him coming stepped quickly out of his way, while those who did not found themselves forcibly removed from his path. It was into this scene that Wufei, who had just finished giving Relena and Dawn a quick summary of what had happened, entered the room himself. At first, he thought Heero was headed for the table Quatre and Trowa were sitting at, since it was in the general direction that the man was moving. But upon closer look, he realized that Heero was not even looking toward them and when he followed that line of sight, a feeling of alarm filled his chest. Moving as quickly as he could, he started across the room after his friend.
Luckily, or not depending on who was asked, Wufei caught Heero just before he could land a powerful right hook on Gregory's jaw. The man in question, stumbling backwards at being suddenly set upon by a clearly enraged young man.
"Where is he?!" Heero bellowed, even as he fought against the hold Wufei had on him.
"Heero, stop!" Wufei exclaimed while struggling to keep the man from ripping Chordney's head off. All around him, he could literally hear all other sounds in the room coming to a stop as the other guests turned their attention toward them. He could only hope that Zechs and the others had also noticed and were coming to help him since he did not think he could hold Heero back much longer.
"Let me go, Chang." Heero snarled and nearly managed to escape his hold. At that moment though, Zechs and Trowa arrived, each one grabbing an arm and lending their strength too in restraining him.
"What the hell is going on?" Zechs demanded, as he found himself hard pressed to keep his grasp on Heero.
"He took Duo and I want to know where he is?" Heero growled.
"He's been here since we arrived, Heero." Trowa tried to reason.
"Then he had a servant do it?" the dark-haired man countered. "I don't care how he did it, I just want him back."
"What do you mean? Is Duo's missing?" Gregory finally stepped in. He had been watching the little drama with a growing sense of deep fear. But not because of the fury and murder he could see shining in the dark-haired man eyes, that he could deal with. It was the words the man was spouting that gave him pause while causing his pulse to race at the same time.
"Don't act like you didn't know. You're the one who took him."
"I assure you, Mr. Yuy." the tall blonde said in all sincerity while still managing to look indignant at the accusation. "I had nothing to do with this."
"Heero, what is this all about?" Quatre finally asked, he had also been watching the events closely and could not suppress his own dread at the implications of Heero's ranting.
With quick and short words, Wufei gave the gathered group a quick overview of the events leading up to Heero's attack. When he was done, the others could now at least understand the man's actions, even if they did not entirely agree with it. Quatre though, had continued to keep a close watch on Gregory's face as the black-haired man had spoken and he could only come to one conclusion.
"He didn't do it, Heero." he said softly, as he lay what he hoped was a calming hand on his friend's arm.
"What?" Heero snapped.
"He's just as worried as we are." the blonde stated before returning his questioning gaze toward Gregory. The man merely returned the gaze, not letting any of his feelings show in his eyes. "Although I'm not sure why." Quatre finished as his brows dipped down in suspicion.
Gregory kept his silence at the continued stare from those sea-blue eyes; inside though he was seething. He could not understand what had gone wrong. It had been Edward's duty to watch over the young man until he could be safely separated from his friends. But he also was not supposed to act on his own. Gregory's plan, while a bit on the desperate side, would have left him the time he needed to work on lowering Duo's shields. With the dark-haired man now fully intent on ripping him to shreds it would be difficult to remain in the room with Duo for a long span of time without increasing the suspicion. If Edward had indeed moved without his blessing, he would have to have a talk with the servant. This could very well cause them to lose in the end. Of course, there was always the chance that it was Christina who had taken him. Either way though, he needed to find a way to excuse himself from the room without drawing anymore suspicion upon himself; and he needed to do so soon.
Luckily, he was saved from any further questioning and released from the center of attention when the Chinese young man stepped in front of his still seething friend, calling all of their attention toward him. "Heero," Wufei started, dropping his voice so that only those in the immediate area could hear him. "you need to drop this. The longer it takes for us to begin the search for Duo, the longer it will take to find him."
At the reminder of the time constraints they were under, Heero could literally feel his mind switching gears and he used that to quickly shove his anger to the back of his mind, locking it away to be dealt with later. With his thoughts solely focused once again on the search for the Duo, he gave Wufei a quick nod before pulling himself from Zechs and Trowa's grasp. He only spared one last, heated look at Gregory before he turned and stalked back across the room, the gathered dignitaries once again parting in his wake.
The others wasted no times in following after him, except Wufei who had turned his own heated stare toward their host as soon as Heero had turned to leave. And while his gaze was not quite as searing as the one Heero had leveled at the man, it nonetheless promising a swift retribution if anything were to happen to his longhaired friend. The staring showdown only lasted for several long seconds until, satisfied that he had delivered his message, the black-haired man turned and followed after his friends. Now that they were all together, they would find Duo one way or another.
********************
"Damn, how long is this hall anyways?" Duo mumbled as he continued to walk. He had already turned three corners and as yet, had found no way to exit the hallway he had somehow stumbled into. This, coupled with his growling stomach and the sputtering flame of his lamp, was only serving to increase his anger. And if he did not find an exit soon, he would see how thin the walls really were.
Just as he was starting to think he really did not have any other choice than to start hacking at one of the wall, he rounded yet another corner and found himself looking at a door. With a sense of relief, mixed with continued trepidation, he approached it. But as he reached out his hand to turn the knob, he paused as visions of what could possible reside on the other side filled his mind. First and simplest of the visions, was a room of some sort, possibly a bedroom that would have another way out that he could use. There were also visions of the more macabre as his mind took that opportunity to remind him of yesterday's scene in the dining room. However, since he did not relish taking the long walk back the way he had just come and since this was the only other way he could possibly go, he reached forward and pulled the door open.
However, of all the things he had imagined behind the door, nothing could have prepared him for what he actually found; the bottom of a flight of stairs that ascended into complete darkness. Holding his lamp up as far as he could, he peered upwards, trying to see just how far they went up. But after a moment of fruitless staring, he finally conceded that it was too dark to see. 'Well,' he thought after mentally calculating the possibilities of where the stairs could lead. 'I'm already on the second floor, so this can't go very far. Unless I'm under one of the turret, that is.' his mind added and he quickly put a cap on that thought before it could go very far.
"Well, there's nothing left for it." he stated after another few minutes of contemplation before walking forward and slowly starting up the stairs. "It's either this or the hall, and I think a change of scenery might just keep me sane."
He had only gone a short ways up the stairs before he started to think that perhaps he would have been better off staying in the hall. The stairs turned out to be very old and in poor repair. They were also narrow and steep, wrapping around the inside of the equally narrow stairwell like a snake around a tree trunk with only a rickety and thin, wooden railing running along the wall for a handhold. But he did not know just how old and dangerous the stairs were until he had gone up nearly five flights and one of the treads suddenly gave out from beneath him, nearly dropping him the, luckily, short distance to the floor below. From then on, he found his pace severely slowed as he was forced to test each tread carefully before putting his full weight on it.
Even with his slow pace and worries over the stairs though, he could not help but wonder just where they were taking him when, after a good five minutes of climbing, his still, slightly skewed sense of directions informed him that he had to have passed the third floor. He had climbed too far to not have. This could only mean that, if he had not somehow ended up in one of the turrets, was now on his way to the roof. At first, that thought caused him to pause in his assent, as he once again carefully weighed his options. Finally though, he decided to continue on upwards since he had already come that far.
So it was, nearly ten full minutes after starting his climb on the second floor, he reached the top of the stairs and found himself facing yet another door. Only this time, he knew exactly what was on the other side. And even though he was relieved that he was not in one of the turrets, the sounds of the storm that reached him even through the door's obvious thickness were enough to snuff that relief before it even had a chance to blossom.
For the next several minutes, he stood on the small landing provided as he debated what to do. Climbing back down the stairs would be risky, especially since his lamp's oil was running low. At that point, he was not sure it would last long enough to see him all the back down; the spill it had taken when he had fell had depleted it more than he had thought at first. Willingly going out into that storm though could very well be far more dangerous than a possible fall from two floors up. As if to prove his thoughts true, a loud crack of thunder chose that moment to sound from outside the door, causing him to jump in reaction. But just as he was thinking that the stairs were indeed his best bet, the door was suddenly throw open by a powerful gust of wind, throwing it back into the wall of the stairwell with a deafening thud.
"Fuck!" he exclaimed as the sheeting rain pour in on him, thoroughly drenching him in the near freezing water. But before he could grab the door and swing it shut, something suddenly hit him from behind, giving him a powerful push forward and propelling him into the maelstrom.
With another sharp cry, both at the push and the new dousing he received from the heavy rain, he stumbled forward only to find himself leaning dangerously over an iron railing that had seen better days a second later. His lamp, which he had only barely kept a hold of following the push, slipped from his hands and disappeared into the darkness that hovered just below him. He only allowed himself a moment to watch its path before its flame was gone and he was quickly pushing himself backwards toward the door. The railing was indeed very old and unable to take his weight; it gave way just as he pushed, following the lamp to tumble to the ground far below. Shaking from the cold and near fall, he then found himself pressed tight against the door, which was now somehow closed tight.
"Fuck!" he swore again as he turned to face the door, his cold and shock, numbed hands closing around the knob and giving it a twist. But it did not move and after another few tries, twisting it first one way and then the others, he finally gave up. In desperation, he slammed his shoulder against the wood several times, but still the door would not budge, and he ended up collapsed against it in defeat.
He did not allow himself to wallow in his self-pity though, as he turned once again to face the storm. The door was located in a small alcove that provided only a measure of protection from the storm; the rain slanted in under the small over hang and the wind howled noisily between the two narrow walls. It was with the flashes of lightening that he found the edge of the alcove wall and peered around the corner. From there, a short walk followed along the roof line before disappearing around a sharp corner.
Taking a deep breath and bracing himself, he placed his hand on the straight side of the roof and stepped out from what protection he had. Then, using the roof as a guide as well as the lightening, he followed the walk to the corner. There, he once again peered around the edge to find the walk continued for about another five feet to the bottom of a short flight of stairs. The roof line only went as far as the stairs and then a railing, much the same as the one that had fallen and almost taken him with it only a few minutes ago, continued up the stairs. With a quick wipe of his eyes to try and clear some of the rain from them, he once again started forward, keeping his hand on the roof until reaching the railing, where he reached out and gave it a good shake. It appeared to be in better shape than the one that had fallen, but he still did not trust it completely. He figured though that if he stayed on the inside toward where the roof slopped away and away from the seemingly straight drop off on the other side, he would be alright. So, once again wiping his face, he slowly climbed the stairs.
It was not until he actually reached the top of the stairs that he allowed himself to give his surrounding much consideration. And just about the same time that he stepped on the last tread, a particularly bright flash of lightening split the sky, giving him a clear view of the area he had just walking onto. "Oh god." he breathed as he realized exactly where he was; the widow's walk.
He could remember seeing the eerie platform during the ride in with Hilde where it sat in the center of the high-pitched roof and he had felt a chill even in the warmth of the car from it. But nothing could have prepared him for the actuality of being there. As the lightening continued to flash around him, he could see off into the distance and first, looking toward the front of the house, he could see the stand of trees that separated the property from the road swaying dangerously in the wind, the same wind that was trying its level best to throw him completely off the roof. Then, after swallowing sharply, he turned to look out over the cliff that butted the house on one side and in the back. He could see the waves being kicked up by the storm as they crashed into the cliff walls; the white, sea foam of their caps reflecting the lightening like eerie ghosts moving to and fro. The sound of them slamming into the cliff clearly defined over the near constant sound of thunder.
For a long moment, he continued to stare transfixed at the raging ocean until a particularly sharp volley of lightening strikes caused him to jump and pulled him from his trance. Now, knowing there was no other way down from the walk, he turned back around with every intention of returning to the door and hammering it down if he had to. But before he could take that first step down the stairs, he was suddenly hit square in the chest by something and thrown backwards to land in the middle of the walk on his back. Climbing almost immediately back to his feet, he searched through the near darkness and rain for any signs of his attacker. But even with the lightening, he could find no one on the roof with him.
Keeping his guard up, just in case the storm had managed to hide the person from him, he started toward the stairs again. Already, his hands and feet were numb and he could feel the lethargy of hypothermia setting in. Attacker or not, if he did not find a way off the roof and back to some heat soon, he would freeze to death in a very short time.
He only managed take one step this time when his fathom attacker struck again. However, this time it did not let go. Instead, it grabbed him by the front of this shirt and drug him backwards until his back was hanging precariously over the low iron railing as whatever it was pressed down on his chest.
"No!" he screamed when he felt the railing begin to give underneath him. If he did not do something soon the cold would be the last of his worries as he would find himself splattered all over Gregory Chordney's front lawn. Unfortunately, he soon found there was nothing he could do, as, when he took a swing at his attacker, he was met by only more cold air. "No!" he screamed again when the railing finally gave way with a torturous shriek and he felt himself begin to fall.
Over the sound of the rain and wind, a woman's voice laughing softly. "I've won again." it whispered smugly in Duo's ear as he felt the darkness engulf him.
TBC...
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