Lupin III Fan Fiction ❯ Daddy's Girl ❯ Shocking News ( Chapter 9 )

Daddy's Girl

By Bekka Mouri-Hibiki

(Lupin isn't mine. Chamberlain gets a surprise when he gets back to his flat. The morning brings Lupin and Jigen a surprise of their own. 'Love Hurts' belongs to the Everly Brothers... yes, The Everly Brothers.)

Part Nine: Shocking News

Chamberlain walked into his apartment and shut the door. He had walked about three miles from where he had rolled the motorcycle into the ocean for too many people had seen him on it. He felt a little sorry he had shot Zenigata since he was the one who had given him the idea for his disguise. He took off the fedora and threw it on the desk to use again; pretty sure the cops wouldn't be looking for him.

He loosened his tie as he walked over to the tape recorder on the desk. ~Let's see what my sweetie got for me, ~ He thought as he hit rewind. Once the tape was at the beginning, he hit 'play'.

He listened to the tape while he poured himself a drink, finding out the names of Fujiko's friends. He smiled as they talked about him and The Golden Gun. They were also concerned over some girl named Toshiko but he fast-forwarded through those parts of the tape. He felt anger rise in him when he realized that Fujiko had somehow let the transmitter fall into the hands of the one they called Goemon.

From the conversations, it seemed Fujiko talked about him to Jigen more than once but it aggravated him even more when Jigen then talked to another man about what they had been doing. ~I'm going to have to teach her a lesson about keeping her mouth shut and not letting her 'gifts' just lay around, ~ He thought as he heard Jigen push Goemon into what sounded like water, the tape going dead shortly afterward.

Chamberlain switched off the player as he smiled again, ~I knew that she was connected to Lupin somehow. Now… it's time to have some fun. ~

**

Lupin yawned as he padded into the bathroom, straightening his boxers. He wasn't very surprised when he heard the shower running. Jigen commonly got up at the crack of dawn because he was unable to sleep more than six hours before he needed get up and have a cigarette. Lupin walked to the sink to brush his teeth and contemplated doing something to piss Jigen off just for fun.

He froze when he heard the person in the shower start to hum 'Love Hurts' and it was decidedly a female doing it. He grabbed the edge of the curtain and pulled it aside to take a peek inside. He got a shriek and a shampoo bottle right between the eyes in return.

" Damn… " Lupin muttered as he fell back onto the bathroom floor, his world phasing in and out.

" Oh my God! I'm so sorry! " Toshiko said as she shut the water off then grabbed a towel. She wrapped it around herself before pushing the curtain aside. She got out of the shower and knelt on the floor next to Lupin. " You scared me! "

" No. It's okay. I should have said something; " Lupin said as he clumsily rubbed the red mark on his forehead.

" No, " Toshiko shook her head, her wet hair dripping on Lupin. " I should have locked the door. I guess I didn't think about it. "

Lupin looked up at her and a tiny smirk came to his lips, " You know what? "

" What? " Toshiko tilted her head to the side a little.

" You look really pretty from this angle, " Lupin said. " Are you sure you're related to Pops? "

Toshiko's face turned deep red, " Mr. Lupin… "

" What? You are very pretty; " Lupin reached up and pushed a lock of wet hair from Toshiko's cheek. She shivered at his touch then pulled away. " What's wrong? "

" Um, " Toshiko stammered. Obviously she had realized just how close she was to Lupin and just how undressed they both were. " This is really awkward. I… "

" It's alright, " Lupin whispered. " I'm going to leave and let you finish your shower, okay? "

Toshiko looked surprised then looked away, " Oh. "

Lupin propped himself up on his elbows. " Was that disappointment I just heard in your voice? "

" I don't know, " Toshiko muttered.

" Look at me, " Lupin gently commanded her. When she did, he placed a hand on her cheek. " I know I have a reputation of being a real Don Juan but I wouldn't do that to you. I'm only fast with fast women. "

Toshiko nodded, " Oh. "

" I brought you here to rest and decide what you want to do about your father, " Lupin looked into Toshiko's big brown eyes. He was again reminded of where Toshiko resembled her father the most for she had his rounded eyes, her lower lids fringed with long lashes. " I didn't bring you here to hurt or use you. It will be up to you if you want to be more than a friend, understand? "

Toshiko hesitated then nodded again, " I think so. "

The bathroom door opened and Jigen blinked as he looked at the scene before him. He finally smirked then whistled before saying, " Okay… set the engines to warp speed, Mr. Scott. "

" It's not what it looks like, " Lupin said as Toshiko moved away and clutched the towel tighter around her. She stared at Jigen's long nightshirt and nightcap without a clue about what to think. " I came in here and I thought you were in the shower. "

" Oh. As you can see, I wasn't… " Jigen narrowed his eyes. " How'd you get a hickey on your forehead? "

" It's not a hickey, " Lupin pointed to the shampoo bottle on the floor. " It's bruise. Toshiko chunked that at me. "

" I'm sorry, " Toshiko muttered. She looked at the floor, " Could I ask you two… you know. "

Lupin grinned sheepishly, " Oh! Sorry! Let me just get my toothbrush and I'll leave. "

Lupin got up and grabbed his toothbrush off the counter before shoving Jigen out the door. He shut it behind him then glared at Jigen. "What? " Jigen said.

Lupin narrowed his eyes, " Have you ever heard of knocking? "

" Is that what you call it now? " Jigen arched an eyebrow. " What is she? She looks like she's eighteen and that's at the oldest! "

Lupin slapped Jigen's nightcap off of his head, " I'm not even thinking about that with her. I know she can't be much older than that. What are you thinking, Wee Willie Winkie? "

" Don't call me that! " Jigen doubled up his fist. " I've told you a million times that I wear this because it's comfortable! "

" Now we're even, " Lupin smirked.

Jigen growled, " Asshole. "

" Takes one to know one, " Lupin walked towards the stairs. " Now, I got to go brush my teeth. "

**

Zenigata woke up and realized he was looking at the stark white ceiling of a hospital room. His leg throbbed with drug-dulled pain and he still felt groggy from what he assumed was a mix of anesthetic and pain meds. A nurse was standing next to the bed and she was writing in his chart. She glanced up, " Oh… good morning. "

" Where am I? " Zenigata asked.

" St. Luke's International Hospital, " The nurse said.

" St. Luke's International Hospital? " Zenigata repeated.

The nurse nodded, " Yes. We were the closest hospital. If they had tried to take you anywhere else, you might not have made it. "

" I see, " Zenigata looked down at his injured leg. He could see it was propped up under the blanket to help circulation. " Were they able to get the bullet out? "

" Yes. It was sent directly to the police for analysis, " The nurse nodded. " I hate to tell you this but it managed to fracture your tibia and fibula. "

" What? " Zenigata narrowed his eyes as he tried to recall what bones she was talking about but the drugs made it hard to think.

" In simple terms, your lower leg is broken in two places. The bullet passed between the two bones and the force broke them. "

" Oh. That's why it hurt like hell, " Zenigata muttered. He had been shot before but it hadn't hurt quite as bad at the shot he had received the night prior.

There was a knock at the door, " Yes? " The nurse called out.

" There's a Mrs. Takahashi here to see the patient, " The person on the other side of the door called.

" Tell her visiting hours don't being until eight! " The nurse next to Zenigata's bed called out. She was surprised when he reached over and grabbed her arm. " Is something wrong? "

" Let her in, " Zenigata said quietly. " She's my ex-wife. I haven't seen her in years. "

" Are you sure? " The nurse asked.

" Yes. Please let her in, " Zenigata gave her his best puppy dog look. The pitiful factor seemed to be multiplied by the condition he was in because the nurse easily relented.

" Yes but please don't strain yourself, " The nurse sighed.

" I won't. "

The nurse opened the door and let Zenigata's ex-wife into the room. Zenigata gave her a tiny smile, " Hello. How have you been, Toshi? "

" I've been better, " Toshi replied. She looked at the nurse, " We'll be fine. We are on speaking terms. We won't get into a fight if that's what you're worried about. "

" Oh. Well then. I will be at the desk if you need anything, " The nurse excused herself.

Toshi waited for the door to be completely shut before she walked over to the bed. " So. Do you know what it's like to be woke up at midnight and told your ex-husband is in surgery because he was shot? "

" I'm sorry… "

" I'm so tired about hearing how sorry you are, Koichi. That's all I ever heard when we were married and I don't want to hear it any more, " Toshi sat down in a chair next to the bed. " I knew you were going to say it to me again if I came here but I came anyway. "

" So you still care? " Zenigata felt hopeful.

" It depends on my mood. The real reason I came is because of Toshiko, " Toshi glanced out the window. She looked at Zenigata, " Her roommate filed a missing persons report on her and called me to let me know she was missing. "

" Oh no, " Zenigata muttered.

" She said that you called yesterday morning looking for her, " Toshi looked down at her hands. " I guess she wasn't with you. "

" I thought she had no use for me, " Zenigata sighed.

" I thought she didn't either so I was surprised when I heard you called her, " Toshi said. " I suppose you got the letter I sent you. "

" Yes. I was going to visit her but she had been gone since the night before when I called, " Zenigata shut his eyes. " I can't believe our little girl is out on her own at her age. "

" I know. She's so grown up for a sixteen year old. "

" She's almost an adult, " Zenigata muttered.

" She already is, " Toshi sighed. " She grew up the day she decided she would never see you again. "

Zenigata shook his head, " I never wanted her to grow up so fast. I wasn't even out of my parents' house at her age and she has a roommate. What did she say when she called? "

" Her roommate told me she's been gone for four days, " Toshi said. " Her roommate lied to you when she said Toshiko had only been gone for a day. "

" Oh God. I hope she's okay, " Zenigata muttered. " Tokyo can be a dangerous place… "

" I know, " Toshi opened up her purse and pulled out a folded newspaper. She gave a forced chuckled as she changed the subject, " You made the front page. "

" What? " Zenigata opened his eyes as Toshi offered him the paper. On the front page there were pictures of him and a sketch of the assailant. One of the guards had provided the description and it looked like Jigen.

" Isn't that one of Lupin's men? " Toshi asked as Zenigata read the story.

" I'm not sure… " Zenigata looked at the picture again. " He looks like him but I met a guy yesterday that looks just like that at the ramen shop. "

Toshi arched an eyebrow, " Are you saying one of Lupin's men has a doppelganger? "

" I saw him with my own two eyes, " Zenigata said. " He looked just like Daisuke Jigen except he was wearing white and a ton of ugly gold rings. "

" The story says the man that shot you was wearing black and no jewelry, " Toshi pointed out.

Zenigata remember that he had shown Jigen's picture to the man that called himself Chamberlain. He thought it over, ~No way. He wouldn't have… He didn't get that good of a look at the picture. ~

" Did you see the man who shot you? " Toshi asked.

" Yes but it looked like Jigen, " Zenigata pointed down at his leg. " I don't think Jigen would have shot me though. "

" Koichi, " Toshi took a deep breath. " You said he looked like the man so how could it not be him? "

" It wasn't, " Zenigata handed her the paper. " I know them too well. "

Toshi shook her head, " Okay. I let you have your little fantasy for now. After all, you have chased Lupin and his gang all over the world and know them disturbingly well. "

" It's part of my job to know them that well, " Zenigata replied in a slightly hostile tone.

Toshi rolled her eyes, " I feel an argument coming on so I had better leave. "

" I promise not to argue, " Zenigata said. " I can tell you my theory and you'll see for yourself. My sixth sense says it wasn't him. "

Toshi shook her head, " No. I spent too many years listening to your theories and all about your sixth sense. "

" But I'm always right, " Zenigata slammed his fist down on the bed. " I've hardly ever been wrong! "

" I beg to differ, " Toshi grumbled. " I'm leaving. You shouldn't strain yourself. We can argue when you're better. "

" I'm not arguing. I want to talk about this, " Zenigata shut his eyes. " All I want you to do is listen to me. Please, just hear me out. "

" I can't just hear you out. You'll ramble and rant for hours without making sense to me just like when we were married. Do you know how many phone bills you ran up just telling me what you thought? " Toshi said.

" But I didn't want you to be left out, " Zenigata shook his head. " I never wanted to leave you two out of my life. "

" You did though, " Toshi glared at Zenigata. " It's was like we never existed once you heard Lupin's name mentioned and when you were home, you were always working on strategies to catch him. "

Zenigata shut his eyes, " I always thought you'd be proud of me. "

" How could we be proud of someone who hardly ever came home? " Toshi got up. " I think the last time you were home regularly was when we had that portrait taken. You know the one I mean. "

" Yes, " Zenigata sighed. " I keep a copy of it in my wallet. "

" I still have one as well, " Toshi admitted quietly. " I start crying when I look at it though. "

Zenigata opened his eyes, " You were so beautiful in that picture. "

Toshi looked away, " I have to leave now. I have to be to work by nine. "

" If you hear anything about Toshiko, please let me know. I really do care, " Zenigata said as Toshi went to the door. " Tell Toshiko her daddy still loves her. "

" I just hope it isn't too late for me to tell her that, " Toshi said as she stopped by the door.

" What's that supposed to mean? " Zenigata arched an eyebrow.

Toshi looked at the floor, " The last time she disappeared like this was when she tried to kill herself. "

Zenigata went cold all over. " You never said anything about Toshiko trying to take her own life. "

" I didn't think you would want to be bothered, " Toshi sighed.

" As soon as I can get out of this bed, I will find our daughter. I don't know what you think about me or what she thinks about me but I care about both of you. I love you two more than anything. "

Toshi stood at the door for a moment then gave Zenigata a cold glare. " You know that's a lie. You love chasing Lupin more than you ever loved us. If you loved us, I would have never divorced you and Toshiko would have had a father when she was growing up. "

" Toshi… " Zenigata said but couldn't finish his statement because Toshi slipped out the door and shut it.

**

Jigen sat on the couch with his head in his hands as he stared at the front page of the newspaper. " Oh hell no, " He muttered over and over again.

" Do you always talk to yourself? " Lupin asked as he walked into the room from the kitchen. Both Jigen and him opted to have cold cereal for breakfast because Goemon had called to say he would be arriving late.

Jigen looked up and pointed at the paper, " Have you seen this yet? "

" No. Why? " Lupin walked over and promptly dropped his cup of coffee, the mug shattering as it hit the stone floor. " Holy shit! " He shouted and grabbed up the paper.

" I can't tell if Pops is dead or alive, " Jigen muttered.

Lupin's hands shook as he read the story quickly. " I can't tell either. Damn incoherent journalists! "

" And those bastards are saying that I shot him, " Jigen covered his face with his hands. " I was here all night except for when I went out to watch out for Fujiko. "

" I know you were, " Lupin read the story again then turned to another page. He sighed in relief, " It says here at the end of the story he is expected to survive. The shot got him in the leg. "

" Yeah but they said I was there trying to assassinate that scientist. They say I shot his assistants too. Lupin, what are we going to do? " Jigen threw himself back against the couch.

Lupin started to think about it. Jigen didn't sound like he was panicking but more like he had run out of ideas or couldn't think of anything himself. He was in quite a predicament and he needed help to get out of it. Lupin decided what they needed to do and looked at Jigen.

" We're going to take Chamberlain down as soon as possible. No one frames my friends, " Lupin said. He leaned down to pick up the pieces of the mug and used the sports section to hold the shattered stoneware.

" I can't believe he dressed up like me though. I mean, how did he even know? "

Lupin slowed down then stopped picking up the pieces, " I think I know. "

" Then tell me, " Jigen said.

Lupin looked up at Jigen, " Pops. "

" Come again? "

" Pops showed him a picture of you at the ramen shop yesterday when he thought he was you, " Lupin put his hand on his chin. " Pops probably didn't think anything of it but it must have given Chamberlain an idea. "

Jigen arched an eyebrow, " I think it was a real shitty idea. "

" What time is it anyway? " Lupin looked around. " Our friendly neighborhood samurai should be showing up… "

As if on cue, Goemon appeared at the sliding glass door and opened it. He looked at Jigen. " I assume you've seen the paper. "

Jigen nodded, " Yeah. You better knock me in the head when Fujiko shows up because I have a feeling only one of us will be walking out of here alive. "

Goemon arched an eyebrow, " Is that so? Do you care to fill me in or is it just pent up aggression from not fighting with her for more than twelve hours? "

Lupin stood up, " You know how those earrings looked like they were rusting? "

" It was a burn mark but she didn't bother to notice. I did however and I have a feeling that a transmitter was concealed in one of them " Goemon set Zantetsuken down against a chair and slipped his gi off so he could expose his abdomen. On the left side of his stomach was a burn mark about the size of one of the earrings. " This is where I was carrying them when Jigen pushed me into the pond. "

" Very interesting, " Lupin muttered.

Jigen got out a cigarette and lit it. He put his lighter back slowly then pondered something. He looked at Lupin, " I just thought of something. "

" What? " Lupin said.

" Do you honestly think she would have given those things up so easily if she knew about the transmitter? "

Lupin looked at Goemon. The samurai was adjusting his gi after pulling it back on but looked at Lupin when he felt the master thief's gaze. " He does have a point, " Goemon said.

" It looks like he's screwing her in more ways than one, " Jigen said.

" I had better call her and see how she is. I know she's seen the paper by now, " Lupin walked to the phone.

" What if she's on her way here? " Goemon said.

" Then Jigen is going to have to be knocked in the head, " Lupin smirked.

**

Fujiko woke with a start because she felt a hand with a rag over her mouth and nose. She could already feel the effects of the sleeping agent the rag was soaked in but she caught a glance of her assailant as she slipped back into slumber. Her vision was blurry but she could make out an outline and she recognized it as her biggest critic…