Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Counting the Seconds ❯ Chapter Thirteen ( Chapter 13 )

DISCLAIMER: It pains me to say it again. Therefore, I won't.

Counting the Seconds

By Scilja

Chapter Thirteen

"Sir!" A hurried series of knocks sounded. "This is of great importance, sir! It calls for your attention immediately!"

The man turned at the voice that called from the closed doors. "We shall continue this conversation another time, Mr. Ferrin," he spoke into the phone, "Good day." He hung up the device before he announced for the man's entrance, "Report, Jev."

At once the doors swung open and in rushed a somewhat faltered man, "Mr. Peacecraft, sir! There are rumors of a leak concerning the aircrafts we are designing!"

"What?!" A mix of crossness and irritation flitted across his face, "Where do the sources come from?"

"I don't know whether you should be relieved by this, sir," the young worker hastily replied, "but it appears to be coming from an outside source that is transferring to us instead."

His livid features were replaced by a furrow of his brow, "You mean the anonymous is spilling forth the information to us instead of giving ours away to other firms?"

"Indeed, sir, it is the opposite that makes this unusual."

The man paused for a moment before raising his head to the standing figure, "See what you can find out more about this, Jev."

He confirmed his superior's statement with a bow, "Yes, sir."

When the employee left, Peacecraft propped his elbows on the desk's surface and rested his chin on his hands. He frowned at the situation. Leaks always meant trouble, but when it was they being the victim, it was even more risky.

He pushed down the intercom button, "Hailey, get me Winner and Barton."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Duo moaned groggily in his slouched, and very uncomfortable, position in the firm chair. He attempted to go back to sleep but a faint ringing noise hummed in his ear. He peered through slits to look down on the hand he held. Pleased that nothing had happened to Hilde, he relaxed. His lids closed, hoping to block out the insistent ringing. When it did not, he groaned in frustration and shifted to reach into his coat pocket.

"Yeah," he shot out. The rays that shone through the blinds meant that it was early morning. He squinted against the light.

"Duo?"

He immediately composed himself upright when he recognized the speaker to be Quatre. "Hey, Quat!" the irritability faded in his voice, "geez, sorry man, had a long night."

A nervous chuckle came from the other end, "It's ok, Duo. I didn't mean to interrupt you so early."

The haste in his words was perturbed, for Quatre wasn't one to act so hurriedly, being calm and focused for the most part. "Quatre, what is it?"

"Duo, do you know where I could reach Heero?"

His brow crinkled in thought, "Did you try his cell?"

"Tried it. His main office, his secretary, and even the bachelor pad that only you, me and a few others know off."

"No such luck, huh?"

"It's urgent, Duo, do you know where he is?"

The young man leaned forward and supported his weight on his knees. He sighed, "Hate to say it but got no clue."

When the other end went silent, Duo started feeling uneasy. There was a moment's hesitation until Quatre spoke up again, "Duo, there's been a leak."

He stiffened and croaked disbelievingly, "Ah, hell no."

"I've received word that someone has been connecting to a partner in firms of mine and providing valuable information."

"And the source?" Dread locked his throat for response.

"The source appears to be coming from ZW."

"Fuck," he groaned despondently, "I'll give you the number to the hotel he and I are staying at. He could be in his suite."

"Thanks, Duo. I'll keep you posted if anything else comes up."

"I'll keep your word to that, blondie."

At that, Quatre hung up. Duo leaned back tiredly in his chair, anxiety visibly etched on his face as he watched the rhythmic rise and fall of his companion's breathing.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Relena woke to the sound of running water. A smile played on her lips, elated that Heero was only a few feet away, no longer so far from her. The sunlight that peeked through the blinds was welcoming with her bright mood. Her body stretched languidly and she let out a satisfied sigh.

For once in her life, she experienced fulfilling content. She had never looked so forward to waking up each day. Every fiber in her being exploded with energy; she felt enthusiasm for living. She turned over to where Heero slept and smiled against his pillow, breathing in the musky scent left behind.

Heero still hadn't stepped out of the bath room yet. Feeling frivolous, she took this time to devise a delectable scheme. Her mind imagined the look on his face when he re-entered the bedroom only to be tackled to the floor and kissed senselessly.

She swung her legs around the bed excitedly. With as much stealth as she could muster, she moved quietly toward the bathroom door. Her clever plan was stopped short by the ringing of the telephone. Despite for being a demure lady, she cursed the device. 'Darn, Heero would've enjoyed the heart attack I would give him.'

Reaching over to retrieve the phone, she hid her annoyance with an impatient 'good morning'.

"Relena?"

"Trowa?" The VP tucked her legs to the side and went into business mode. Even for having a rare show of emotion, the tone in his voice did not sound relaxed. Her brow crinkled in query, "What is it?"

Dread suddenly rose inside her at the slight pause Trowa made on the other line. Unless it was a moment of thought or when no more words were necessary, Trowa never paused. "Relena, I am really calling for Yuy. There was no answer in the suite Quatre gave me the number to. Perhaps you know where I can reach him?"

For a second, she wondered if Trowa knew Heero was in her room. Gathering her wits together, she shook off her inquisitiveness. "Sorry, Trowa, I don't know," she eyed the bathroom door which hadn't opened yet, "but I could deliver a message to him when I do see him."

"That's fine, Relena, I want to speak to him personally about this."

Curiosity took its toll on her, "Trowa, tell me, I'm going to see him today anyway." She urged wanting to know what got her friend so unusually wrung. Based on his serious tone of voice, it must be intense.

"I can't share this with you, Rel, it's ―"

He was interrupted before he could finish his statement, "Please, Trowa? Strangely enough, I feel I should know because we are currently in a project with ZW. If you won't tell me from a colleague to colleague point of view, tell it to me as a friend."

He gave in, knowing Relena would simply be more persistent, "There's been a giveaway…"

Her heart lurched forward in panic for the coming words, 'Don't say ZW, don't say ZW, don't say ZW."

"…the sources point to ZW."

'Crap.' "Oh no..."

"Do you know of TMG and Winner partnership on a jet expansion pack?"

"I've heard about it. From speaking with Mr. Winner, he financially supports TMG on the construction of a new aircraft."

Trowa grunted in approval. "One of Yuy's men, Treize Kushrenada, is in charge of the outline of the improvement on ZW's own aircraft. The other night, Kushrenada was at a bar. He got more than his share of alcohol, pushing him to reveal the confidential information to open ears. The last we heard of him was that he was planning to sell his profile to TMG, which is ―"

"― ZW's chief competitor," Relena finished for him. "Trowa, how did you know of all this?"

"Come to think of it, in a way you are involved, because an employee of yours named Barnes approached us with this info."

'Barnes?!' Her mind screamed. "What did he say?"

"Enough to let us know that Kushrenada is playing a dangerous game."

Dreask's representative nervously bit her lip, unsure of how to handle the situation. "Thanks, Trowa, I'll see what I can do."

The minute she hung up the phone, another call rang through. "Ms. Relena?"

"Barnes!" She rushed to the point, "Barnes, tell me what you know about Treize Kushrenada."

"I was about to tell you right away, Ms. Darlian. I met him the night before at a bar after my meeting with Mr. Bishop, and he got very drunk. Anyway, it seems that Heero came down hard on him just before he left to Hawaii. Apparently, it's not the first time Kushrenada bad-mouthed his boss, but he was more vindictive that night."

A small part of her was pleased that her employee had buckled down and was repairing his foundation with Mr. Bishop, but first things first, "Alright, Barnes, the man was sloshed up, get to the point, please."

"He was raving on and on about Heero's firm standards then he threatened to take his campaign of ZW's new aircraft to TMG. He says 'they'll reward him better than the dirt Yuy gives him daily'."

She sunk further in her spot on the mattress; her ears itched disbelievingly at her employee's words. It happened, though rarely, that someone would take their work for the company and auction it to a high bidder. What made her cringe was the fact that it was happening to them.

"You're sure about this, Barnes? You're not exaggerating?"

"No, Kushrenada meant it. There was nothing but spite behind his words."

Relena brushed honey-colored strands with her hand to relieve some nervous tension, "Don't talk about this to anyone."

"I won't, ma'am," Barnes replied. "Oh, Ms. Darlian?"

"Yes?"

"I spoke with the woman who was giving me a hard time."

"And?"

"She won't be doing that anymore. I know I can do better."

She smiled then. "I knew you had it in you, Barnes."

"Thank you, Ms. Relena, you know, for everything."

"No, thank you," she said, referring to the tip he gave of Treize.

She was just replacing the receiver when a pair of strong arms encircled her waist from behind. An avid mouth went to her neck, "That had better be a female caller." A surprised yelp escaped her when he flipped her over and pinned her on the bed. "H-Heero…"

He went straight to mouthing wet kisses along her bare collarbone, earning a soft moan from her. "Shh, I'm punishing you." She raised questioning eyes at him only to arch her head back when he suckled beneath her jaw line. "You shouldn't look so helpless in the morning, especially in nothing but a bra and shorts."

Her cheeks flushed at his bold words, but a notion kept nudging her at the back of her mind. "Heero, listen, there's something you need to know."

She felt a twinge of disappointment when he ceased the actions of his tongue. He looked at her, smirking, "You've decided to succumb to me? Don't worry, I'm fine with that."

His descending mouth was stopped short by dainty fingers. "Please, I mean it."

Sensing the distress behind her words, he propped his weight on his elbows and gazed down at the femme beneath him. "Who was that?"

"Barnes, and before that, Trowa."

He tensed at the mention of the last name, not having forgotten the closeness his rival shared with Relena. "Barton? What did he want?"

"Heero, something happened," she brought her hands up to cup the sides of his face, "you have a man named Treize Kushrenada working for you."

"Yes," he answered with a slight arch of his brow.

"He's going to sell his profile of the new airline to TMG Corp."

He stared at her, his features held an unreadable expression, "What?"

"Barnes and him were at a bar the other night. Treize downed pass his limit of alcohol and began spouting unflattering comments about you. Barnes said that they were in an argument that somehow caused Treize to snap. Along the lines of his tirade was him planning to take his work for ZW to TMG."

His features remained impassive as she waited for a response from him. She readied herself for the coming of his reaction. But what she wasn't prepared for was a confident smirk.

Relena felt dumbfounded.

"Barnes said that?" A light chuckle resounded from his throat. "And Barton, what was his role in this? For all we know, Relena, he could be making this up. Being Winner's contractor, he could very easily be in on this charade." The corner of his lips quirked up, "I didn't think Barnes was that gullible to fall for it."

Her head became dizzy from the fury building inside her. He had insulted both her friend and employee! She squeezed his shoulders to bring some sense to him. "Barnes isn't like that! And neither is Trowa! Heero, I'm serious about this! This is no joke," she said tightly.

"Like hell it isn't. So someone was steaming off about me, took those words and twisted it around. They're making a big deal out of this."

"I think you should take what they are saying critically instead of just brushing them off."

Heero leaned back while Relena began to sit up. He frowned, "Why are you getting angry, Relena?"

She clenched the bed sheets, "Because you are implying that either both are dishonest with a warped sense of humor or malicious sneaks. If you think I would accept those kinds of people, then I have a sense of how you see me as a person."

"I don't think of you that way."

"Alright, Heero," she said tersely, "did you or did you not have arguments with Treize?"

His eyes gleamed crossly, "Treize was not co-operating with the details we were looking for. He needed to be put back in his place. His improvements for the airline were disappointing. I gave him a week to revise it."

The VP raised a delicate brow at him, "And you question the reason why Barnes would give you an image of Treize being spiteful? Perhaps you were a little harsh on him. In any case, you should believe what Barnes and Trowa say."

Now mad, Heero supported his weight against one hand and bent forward to Relena, a scowl appearing on his face, "Treize comes up with creative ideas but usually needs a push to get going. He's loyal. He wouldn't sell to the competition."

"How can you be so sure?! Don't tell me your pride has got the best of you. I'm amazed at your self-esteem. Is there anyone in this world blind enough to fall for it?"

He peered at her warily, "You do."

She shut her eyes to suppress her anger. "Get out," she rasped.

Heero cursed with more imagination she had ever heard in her life. It had been a wrong thing to blurt out. A very wrong thing. He ran his fingers through his hair in irritation, "Damnit, Relena, that's not what I meant."

"Oh, yes you did," she replied sardonically and gave an empty laugh. "Pity that I've fallen right where you wanted me. And to think that here I am, telling you of a predicament that could make a huge negative impact to your company. Not to mention, a problem which I could have simply deterred away and left you to deal with the pain later. But stupid me, I had the heart to tell you about it because I actually cared!"

An angry growl sounded from his throat. His actions were rough and fierce as he gathered his clothes.

"You wasted your time caring, Relena," he snarled over his shoulder, went through the door, and out of her sight.

TBC…