Lupin III Fan Fiction ❯ Daddy's Girl ❯ After Dinner ( Chapter 8 )

Daddy's Girl

By Bekka Mouri-Hibiki

(Lupin isn't mine, The Golden Gun isn't mine and I should have mentioned that the two Queen songs I quoted last chapter aren't mine. Jigen and Fujiko wait on Chamberlain as Zenigata catches a glimpse of someone familiar at the ceremony he's working.)

Part Eight: After Dinner

Fujiko stood under the canopy of trees and waited. She glanced up at the tree Jigen was sitting in. He was so well hidden; she couldn't even see his cigarette. She sighed; trying not to think about the movie Lupin had selected to go with dinner and how it seemed to contradict her notions of what The Golden Gun was all about.

She was surprised at the fact that Toshiko had joined them, no doubt invited by Lupin and he wouldn't take no for an answer. She had been rather quiet and a bit shy, probably overwhelmed by the thief's courtesy in spite of her attempt on his life. It seemed the two had made some kind peace not too much unlike the one she had forged with Jigen. The only difference she could see was the fact that her truce with Jigen was forged out of duress.

" Time, " She said sharply.

" Eleven thirty, " Jigen called back after flicking his lighter so he could see his watch.

Fujiko frowned, " He's never late. He usually gets here on time. "

" Let's hang around for another half hour, " Jigen said. She knew he was smirking by the tone of his next comment, " Maybe he got that third nipple of his caught in something. "

" He doesn't have a third nipple, " Fujiko hissed. She thought about it for a moment, " At least, I don't think he does. "

" That's what you get for screwing some guy in the dark. He could have ten nipples like a dog and you wouldn't know. What the hell does he do? Tie your hands up so you can't touch him? "

" No. He doesn't tie me up, " Fujiko stomped her foot. " I'm usually holding on to his shoulders and can't move my hands. Wait, why am I telling you this? "

" I don't know but I'm about to throw up from the visuals I'm getting, " Jigen said.

" Oh shut up, " Fujiko narrowed her eyes. She sensed someone close by and fell silent. She heard Jigen pull his Magnum out.

" He's not coming, " Goemon said as he became visible in a shaft of moonlight. He had left dinner early after deciding he wasn't feeling well and blamed Jigen for it. Fujiko looked surprised by his presence.

" Hey! What the hell are you doing here? " She asked sharply.

" I volunteered to help protect you. I am disappointed in you but I couldn't let you get hurt, " Goemon said then acted like he was going to sneeze. After he did sneeze, he said, " I obviously had to refrain in the end because it is not easy hide when you have a cold. "

" Disappointed? " Fujiko arched an eyebrow. " What did I do to offend you this time? "

" Jigen explained the situation to me, " Goemon narrowed his eyes and looked up in the tree. " I assume he is up there. "

" Jigen! " Fujiko shouted upwards. " How could you? "

" He thought we were acting suspicious, " Jigen said as he jumped down from the tree. " He could tell something was up and I went ahead and told him. "

" Wonderful! " Fujiko growled. " Did you broadcast it on the shortwave radio as well? "

Jigen smirked, " I can if you want me to. "

Fujiko let out a frustrated growl, " Asshole. I thought I could trust you. "

" Hey, " Jigen shrugged. " I figured the more the merrier. "

" We'll discuss it later, " Goemon interjected then looked towards the house. " Lupin called and says there is another matter he has become aware of. He says that he might know who the hit is on and why. "

" Really? " Jigen dropped his cigarette on the ground and crushed it out.

" He was scarce on the details but he did say it was worth our while, " Goemon nodded. " He said it had to do with the artificial fabrication of precious metals. "

" It does sound worth our while, " Jigen noticed Fujiko didn't look so well again. He reached over and patted her on the shoulder, " What's the matter babe? "

" Do you even have to ask? " Fujiko muttered.

**

Zenigata watched the ballroom. Once the ceremony had ended, there was a fancy dress ball in honor of the diplomat. As with the ceremony, security was very tight. He saw the chief of the operation and decided to get more details than he had been provided. He walked over to the man, " Chief. "

" Yes, Inspector Zenigata? " The chief said.

" May I ask you something? " Zenigata scanned the room for any suspicious looking people.

" Sure, " The chief replied.

" Why is security so tight around here anyway? I thought the diplomat was from some little insignificant country. "

" Hardly! " The chief threw an arm around Zenigata. " You see he is from a place where they have discovered to make flawless artificial precious metals. Chemically, they are similar to their natural counterparts but will make them much less expensive to obtain. "

" Oh. So why is he here? " Zenigata felt a little uncomfortable with the man's arm around him.

" He presented the prime minister with bars of the metals his country's scientists have produced. The country's government funds the company that has perfected the process and they are in the process of signing several contracts with electronics manufacturers here in Japan. It is actually a very big deal. "

" And the diplomat is connected somehow? " Zenigata asked.

" Of course, " The chief leaned closer. " He is the man who perfected the process. Once he trains more people how to do the process, precious metals used in electronics will no longer be so costly. In the future, the process could be used to make jewelry less expensive. "

" Does anyone else know how the process works? " Zenigata arched an eyebrow. His sixth sense was ringing like a fire alarm. He wondered if Lupin knew about the process and if he were planning to do something about it. If it were true, such a process would cut into his profits considerably in the jewelry department.

" He has three assistants, " The chief looked around again. " Well, I should say had. Two were assassinated in the country our guest hails from and the other was seriously wounded. The security is so tight here because we don't want the genius to be killed. "

" So I was asked because my jurisdiction is the whole world, " Zenigata arched an eyebrow.

" That is part of the reason yes, " The chief let go of Zenigata and looked at the floor. " That and we are afraid that Lupin might catch wind of this man's advances and want to put a stop to it. We have no idea who assassinated his assistants but we have possible suspects in mind. "

" And you suspect Lupin? " Zenigata had a skeptical air to his voice.

" Why wouldn't we? " The chief looked puzzled. " He would suffer greatly if precious metals were to become… well, not so precious. "

" As would every other thief in the world, " Zenigata narrowed his eyes. " Have you even received a note? Lupin never does anything unless he announces it. "

" But with stakes this high a man could always change his ways, " The chief said with a cold smile.

" I doubt it but I will help catch whoever it is, " Zenigata said just as coldly.

**

Lupin stood up as Fujiko, Jigen and Goemon came into the house. " I am so sorry about calling you in here this late but something really important has come up. "

" You mean besides finding out that The Golden Gun has more of a hyped up reputation than you do? " Fujiko sat down sullenly in an overstuffed chair.

Lupin sighed, " I'm horribly sorry about that but what I have found out is much more important. "

" Did you find out he has four nipples? " Jigen asked as he gave Fujiko a sly look.

" Would you shut up about the damn nipples already? " Fujiko gripped the arms of the chair, her knuckles turning white.

Lupin arched an eyebrow, " Okay. I don't think I want to know. "

" No, you don't. Can we please continue? " Fujiko let up on the chair, her fingernails leaving marks in the leather.

" I have found out who the hit is on and some interesting facts about the target. Did you know that there was a ceremony in downtown Tokyo tonight where the Prime Minister was presented with five ingots? "

" What kind of ingots? " Jigen said.

" One of copper, one of silver, one of titanium, one of platinum and one of gold. "

" Why the Prime Minister? " Jigen arched an eyebrow. " Was there some kind of treasure found off the coast? "

" It would not surprise me, " Goemon said. " I am sure that is a possibility. "

" No. That's not it, " Lupin said. He frowned, " The special thing about these ingots is that they were all produced in a lab. "

Jigen whistled, " Slabs produced in a lab… "

" Yes and I really don't find it that amusing. From what I understand, the target is the man who has perfected making nearly perfect artificial precious metals, " Lupin sat down on the couch. " That could mean a lot of trouble for a lot of thieves. "

" That sounds impossible, " Jigen reached into his jacket and got out a cigarette.

" Not entirely… obviously. I don't even know where to begin to fathom how he's doing it but those bars are proof it can be done. The information I have says the scientist only wants to produce top quality components for electronics but someone else has been trying to coerce him into doing otherwise."

" What do you mean? " Goemon arched an eyebrow.

" His assistants have all been assassinated except for one but they think he's going to be a vegetable once he recovers from his injuries, " Lupin sighed. " I think someone is trying to send him a message. "

" That sounds logical, " Goemon nodded. " It is obviously someone blinded by greed and cannot see the consequences of making precious metals into something commonplace. "

" Yeah, " Jigen took a drag off of his cigarette. " If precious metals become common, people will be using gold for bed sheets before too long. "

" And jewelry settings will be practically worthless… " Fujiko whispered.

" Then, " Goemon looked at the floor. " The world economy, which depends on gold and silver, will collapse. That is just the worse case scenario but it could happen. "

" Nothing made of silver, gold or platinum will be worth stealing, " Jigen muttered.

" And we can't let that happen, " Lupin said. " We need to steal the plans on the process so no one else can get them. "

" Where are these plans though? " Fujiko asked.

" The scientist has them with him, " Lupin said. " Since he's the one who came up with the process, he won't need the plans. He can just write them up again once we find out who's trying to kill him and turn him into the police. With any luck, Chamberlain will sing like a bird once he's caught. "

Goemon and Fujiko both took sharp breaths at the utterance of the man's name. Fujiko blinked, " You found out his name? "

" You didn't tell me on the phone that you had, " Goemon glared at Lupin.

Lupin shrugged, " I forgot. "

" So you found out this stuff about him once you learned his name? " Jigen queried.

" Yeah, " Lupin glanced at Fujiko. She was starting to look uncomfortable.

" What else did you find out? " Jigen said.

Lupin smiled, " I've found out he's a loud-mouth amateur who just happens to have a shooting capability close to yours. The supposed Golden Gun he carries around is as accurate as the rumors say but that could be because of his ability. It seems that the gun Ian Fleming wrote into his story was just coincidental. The real one is nothing like that piece of shit we saw in the movie. "

" Yeah. The prop budget must have been pretty low. That gun couldn't have picked off a sparrow at fifty paces, " Jigen commented as he sat down on the arm of the chair Fujiko was in.

" Get off, " Fujiko said.

" No. My ass hurts from sitting on that damn tree branch for so long, " Jigen said.

Lupin narrowed his eyes, " Hold the phone. Where the hell were you two when Goemon found you? "

Jigen and Fujiko looked at each other, " She was walking out to the woods so I figured I'd follow her. I wanted to see what she was up to. "

" I was going out to look for those teenagers, " Fujiko said. " Lupin was busy and I figured a woman would have been less of a scare to them than Jigen. When I ran into him, I asked him to hide in one of the trees. "

Lupin nodded with a skeptical expression on his face, " Sure. Is there something I need to know? "

" Like what? " Jigen looked at Lupin.

" Did you find those kids? " Lupin leaned back against the couch.

" We waited but they never showed up, " Fujiko shrugged. " I guess they decided to take the night off. "

" Or the boyfriend has something better to do, " Lupin said with a tone of self-confidence. Fujiko almost narrowed her eyes at Lupin but stopped. He seemed to know something was going on and she wondered if Jigen had told Lupin. She wouldn't put it past the both of them to screw with her head if given the opportunity. Lupin focused his attention on Jigen, " As for you… "

" What? " Jigen gave Lupin a wary look.

" I thought you had a pool tournament tonight, " Lupin smirked. " Shouldn't you be getting out of here soon? "

" No, " Jigen looked down at the floor. " I got confused. I called the bar and they said it wasn't my turn until next week. "

" Is that so? " Lupin nodded once. He looked at Goemon, " What were they doing when you found them? "

" I heard Fujiko arguing with a tree so I decided to see if she was ill. She slammed her head into the floor a couple of times this morning so it was logical to be concerned, " Goemon said then sneezed.

" You okay? " Lupin furrowed his brow.

" I will be fine. I believe it will only last a couple of days. I think I got some algae up my nose, that's all. "

" I supposed you have some remedy for it back at the house you're renting? " Lupin arched an eyebrow.

" Yes, I do. If we are finished here I would like to go back and take the next dose, " Goemon stood up. He took a step towards the door then stopped. He reached into his kimono and held out his left hand to Fujiko. " I meant to give these to you earlier. You left them behind last night. "

Fujiko took her earrings out of Goemon's outstretched palm, " Oh. I was wondering where those had gotten. "

Lupin glanced over and noticed something strange about the earrings. " Did you have those on you when you fell in the pond? " He asked as he took one out of Fujiko's hand.

" Yes. Are they rusting? " Goemon looked closer as well. He noticed what looked like a burn mark at the one o'clock position on it.

" Yeah, " Lupin quickly put the earring in his pocket. " Fujiko I'll clean it up and give it back to you tomorrow. "

" Take this one too. If they're so cheap that they're rusting, I don't want them. "

Lupin took the other earring, " I can get you a better pair anyway. What would you like in them… rubies, emeralds, diamonds or sapphires? "

" Diamonds, " Fujiko sighed. " I thought that's what those were. "

" Diamonds it is, " Lupin glanced at Jigen. " It's pretty late. Can I get you to escort Fujiko home? "

" I can take care of myself, " Fujiko said as she stood up. " Besides, it's a full moon out. He might finish turning into a werewolf and I don't want to see that. "

" That's just fine with me. I wouldn't escort you anywhere except maybe to the river Styx to kick you in, " Jigen replied.

" I'd grab you and take you with me, " Fujiko scoffed.

" Children! " Lupin said dramatically. " I thought we had a truce here. "

Jigen growled, " It's a very fragile one. "

" I'm leaving before he breaks it totally, " Fujiko said and walked to the door. " I will see you boys later. "

" Don't threaten us, " Jigen called after her. She responded by slamming the door as hard as she could behind her.

" So much for the peace pact, " Goemon muttered. " I shall take my leave as well. "

" Goodnight then, " Lupin said as Goemon walked towards the sliding glass door. After the samurai had left, Lupin looked at Jigen. " I bet she was surprised to see him out there. "

" She was rather pissed off about it, " Jigen said. " I forgot to mention I asked him along to scare those teenagers. "

" Jigen, " Lupin looked at his friend. " Mishi told me something else about Chamberlain but I didn't want to mention it until I was sure. "

" What's that? " Jigen arched an eyebrow.

" He's been seeing Fujiko. He told Pops he's been meeting her here, " Lupin said.

" Damn. This guy is an amateur if he doesn't even know who Pops is. Now Zenigata's going to be following him around until he finds us, " Jigen put out his cigarette in the coffee table ashtray.

" Yeah but that's not the half of it. I have a feeling that Fujiko might be working with him; " Lupin motioned for Jigen to follow him into the office.

" You think so? " Jigen asked as he followed Lupin. " How come? "

" This, " Lupin held up one of the earrings Fujiko had let him take.

Jigen looked puzzled, " So? He gave her a pair of cheap earrings. "

" That's not it. They're not the best but what I'm talking about isn't visible at the moment. Hand me my jewelers' tools. "

Jigen went to one of the bureaus along the wall and pulled out the slim case that held the tools Lupin wanted. They were old and Lupin said they had belonged to Lupin The First. " I can't wait to see this, " Jigen muttered as he handed the tools to Lupin.

Lupin opened the case and pulled out a tool used to pry prongs away from a setting, " I can't wait either. "

Jigen watched as Lupin loosened the largest of the stones and popped it out. He frowned deeply before holding the earring out to Jigen. " That little lying slut, " Jigen muttered as he looked at a fried transmitter that had been encased in the piece of jewelry.

" I bet it shorted out when Goemon hit the water, " Lupin put the earring back down on the table. He finished prying the earring apart then looked at Jigen.

Jigen out his hands up, " I told you. She's bad news. "

" There aren't any teenagers are there? " Lupin asked in a grave tone.

Jigen sighed, " No. "

" Tell me why you called a truce with her and I want the truth, " Lupin leveled his gaze at Jigen. " You've known something about this all along. "

" Not any more than you know now, " Jigen put his hands up. " I mentioned that blanket in front of her this morning and that's when she stopped fighting Goemon. I could tell something was up so I made her tell me. "

" How long were you going to keep it from me, Jigen? " Lupin said then pushed his chair away from the desk and coasted across the floor to the liquor cabinet.

" I was just looking out for you, " Jigen plopped down on the couch. " What? Did you want me to tell you she was banging someone in your backyard? "

Lupin pulled out a bottle of scotch and two tumblers, " It would have been nice. "

" Look, " Jigen reached into his jacket and got out a cigarette. " You were so busy with this Golden Gun crap; I didn't want to bother you. "

" I wish you had said something earlier though. According to what I've found out, he's one dangerous bastard, " Lupin rolled back to the desk and poured two glasses of scotch. " If Fujiko's working with him, we're going to have to watch her ass as well as our own. "

" That should be easy for you, " Jigen muttered as he lit the cigarette. Lupin rolled over and gave him his glass of scotch. " Thanks. "

" I have other concerns right now too, " Lupin said before taking a drink.

Jigen drank his scotch then nodded, " Yeah. It's in the upstairs bedroom, right? "

" Bingo. She wants me to reunite her with Pops. "

Jigen whistled, " Sound like we've got a full schedule… "

" There's another thing… " Lupin said as he poured himself another glass of scotch.

" What's that? " Jigen held out his glass as Lupin rolled over to give him a refill. He thanked him then said; " I noticed she kept looking at you and blushing tonight at dinner. What made her want to eat with us anyway? "

" She insisted on joining us, " Lupin chuckled. " She said she was tired of being in bed. "

" Is she feeling better? " Jigen drank half of the refill.

" A little, " Lupin shrugged. " I guess she's decided that I'm not mad at her for what she tried to do. "

Jigen scoffed, " I doubt she would have done much damage with that cap gun she was carrying. For a cop's daughter, she sure doesn't know much about guns. "

" Should we tell her that? " Lupin arched an eyebrow.

" Nah, " Jigen waved his hand. " Let her think she could have killed you with a starter pistol. The worst she could have done with it was made you deaf for a couple of days. "

" I'm so happy you care, " Lupin said sarcastically. " You know that a blank can kill if it's fired close enough. "

Jigen nodded, " That would have sucked if you were did in by a piece of paper. "

" Yes it would have, " Lupin sighed.

" You should have seen her though. She was staring at you a lot tonight, " Jigen smirked. " Until you looked at her, her eyes were glued to you. "

" I think she might actually like me, " Lupin said as he got out a cigarette of his own.

" That could cause problems if the feeling is mutual, " Jigen said as he brought his glass to his lips. He glanced at Lupin and could tell he hit a nerve with his comment because he had froze like a deer in headlights. " If you're going to smoke, it helps to light it. "

Lupin took the cigarette out of his lips and flipped it around in his fingers as he stared at it. " Jigen? "

" Yeah? "

" Your powers of perception amaze me. "

" What about Fujiko? " Jigen motioned towards the office door.

" I still love her but she's not interested in me right now, " Lupin shrugged.

" True and she's never really been a consideration before, " Jigen nodded. " I would say she's hardly ever interested unless we're going after something really big and expensive. "

" Fujiko is fickle but at least she knows that I love her and will always have open arms for her, " Lupin finished off his glass of scotch. He refilled it then looked at Jigen, " More? "

" I'm not really in a drinking mood tonight, " Jigen sighed then finished off his drink. " My teeth hurt and you know that's a bad sign. "

" Maybe it means you just need to go to the dentist more often, " Lupin said.

Jigen growled and stood up. " I'm going to my room. I need some time to think. "

" Think about what? " Lupin arched an eyebrow.

" I need to think about the best way to string up a certain little bitch if things are as bad as they look, " Jigen said as he stopped at the door and glanced at Lupin.

" Play along with her until the time is right, " Lupin said. " We'll get closer to Chamberlain that way. "

**

Zenigata skirted the edges of the ballroom, his eyes darting back and forth as his sixth sense buzzed like a bee in his head. ~What's going to happen? Could the chief be right? ~

As he made another round around the room, something caught his eye. There was a golden pipe poking through one of the air vents. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up as he realized that it wasn't a pipe, it was the barrel of Magnum. He quickly took out his gun and fired at the vent, sparks flying as his bullet grazed the metal.

Women screamed and men dove to protect their dance partners as the security guards converged on the spot where Zenigata stood. " Inspector! " The chief yelled. " What's going on here? Why did you shoot? "

" Check the air vents! " Zenigata shouted to the guards. " There's someone with a gun in there! Half of you stay here with the guests and the other half need to follow me! "

The chief looked shocked, " You can't order my men around! "

" Yes I can, " Zenigata turned to the man. " I saw the gun and the barrel was the color of gold. We need to catch them before they get away! "

" Do you think it was it Lupin The Third? " The chief asked hastily.

Zenigata shook his head, " No. He would never be this cowardly. He would have come here in disguise and been out here with everyone else. "

" Then one of his men perhaps? " The chief seemed determined that it had been Lupin.

" No! " Zenigata shook his head. " There's no time for this. I need to go look for the person. We will talk more once this whole place has been searched. "

The chief stood shocked as Zenigata went past him and followed the other security guards out of the ballroom. He found a kicked out air vent as he turned the corner. " That way! " He shouted, pointing down the hallway.

Zenigata ran ahead of everyone, knowing the assailant couldn't have gotten too far in such a short amount of time and was right. He caught a glimpse of someone running through an exit so he flowed. The exit led into a parking garage that was poorly lit but Zenigata was still able to make out the back of the retreating assassin. He clenched his jaw when he thought he recognized the rear profile, the black suit and a black fedora.

" Stop! " Zenigata yelled as he pushed himself to catch up. He watched as the man ducked around a corner then heard the sound of motorcycle engine starting. He had to stop and quickly turn the other way when the man he had been chasing came roaring around the corner on a jet-black motorcycle.

He looked over his shoulder as he ran, shocked at what he saw. From what he could tell, the man was Daisuke Jigen. " Stop! " Zenigata shouted as the man on the motorcycle picked up speed, forcing Zenigata to dive out of the way.

" Inspector! Watch out! " One of the security guards yelled. A moment later, Zenigata screamed in pain as a bullet found it's way into the back of his lower leg.

Several of the guards pulled their side arms and fired at the retreating motorcycle to no avail. They quickly turned their attention to Zenigata, moving quickly help him or find help as blood started to soak his pant leg. The sound of sirens could be heard as more police arrived on the scene. Zenigata's world started to blur as one of the security guards told him an ambulance was coming as well.