Mission Accomplished: On The Run
Relative disclaimers apply.

Duo reached him first, and clapped him on the back.

"Hey! You made it."

Wufei jerked a thumb at the limousine over one shoulder.

"Thank him. And yes, I got your message."

Duo's face fell.

"Which one?"

"Lay off him. He's here. That's what's important," Trowa said.

Relena looked at Quatre.

How...?

He gave her a smile and a quick wink.

She blushed and looked away.

They always know where you are. But how did they find Wufei? Was he on the way here? If so, how did he know we're here?

Wufei bowed to Quatre.

"Thanks. Really."

Quatre waved this aside.

"No problem. Come on, everyone—"

Duo glared at him.

"How'd you know where he was? Did you know all along?"

"Calm down. Leave it alone," Heero said.

Quatre waved this aside as well.

"It's all right. Duo, they found him. All right? Now please, get into the car. We don't have much time."

Wufei shrugged.

"I was taking a walk."

Duo actually snarled at him.

"So my message wasn't important, huh?"

"Stop it," Relena commanded, and practically yanked open the passenger door that was closest to her.

Wufei answered Duo's question anyhow: "You just said that you were looking for me. You didn't say why. I would have replied, if you had."

Duo's jaws clenched.

"You...could...have...replied...anyhow!"

Quatre exhaled, then hurried to hold the door open for Relena.

"Leave him alone, Duo, and get into the car."

Duo heaved a long, long sigh.

"Fine. But I get a window."

"So what's happened?" Wufei asked from a right-hand-side passenger seat.

Quatre turned to face him from the front passenger seat.

"Someone or someones working for my family put some of our properties together and named it 'Booth's'."

Wufei nodded.

"I see. It doesn't really exist. And no one questioned its origins until you guys discovered something wrong."

Relena, sitting behind Trowa and Wufei, sighed.

"Neither Quatre nor myself can account for some of the things that Booth's has done with the money that both of our families gave to Booth's."

"Well...." Wufei began, then closed his mouth.

All the parties involved want to look good to the public - and on their balance sheets.

Quatre nodded.

"Of course, Michael Booth wasn't there to answer any of our questions. But the secretaries swore that he was on the way to meet with us, and tried to keep us in his office."

"Yeah. So they could get a fix on your location."

Relena bowed her head.

"They're going through so much trouble to keep us away. What are they protecting? It's my building, damn it."

Her curse surprised the others into silence. But they weren't surprised that she had said it. This was a troublesome, frustrating situation.

Heero, sitting behind her, resisted the sudden urge to squeeze her shoulder.

"Relena. I...I don't think that it's yours anymore."

She gasped. She looked at the roof of the car. A hand flew towards her throat, then rested in her lap.

"What...?"

Quatre's eyes narrowed briefly; then he faced forwards again.

"So that's it."

Duo, next to Heero, sharply leaned forwards.

"What's it?"

Quatre answered that question with another one.

"Where are we going? We have to lay low at least until the morning. Raymond, check the database, please."

The driver nodded.

"Sure thing, Mister Winner."

"We can't stay in this area," Trowa said.

"We'll just have to drive around until we find someplace...suitable," Quatre said.

Relena shook her head slowly.

"I don't care where. The street looks good to me right now."

Duo winced.

"No, milady. We'll find someplace nice. Someplace...suitable."

The Wending Arms was supposed to be suitable enough, according to the car's database-map. But it was actually slightly higher in class than the nearly deserted, very dilapidated area that it resided in. And, the ten-floored former housing project looked as though the conversion had yet to be completed.

Or perhaps the balconies, which began on the second floor, were supposed to look unsteady, and there were supposed to be bars on all of the windows.

Duo gasped as the limousine pulled into what passed as the parking lot.

"Quatre — how long ago was that database upgraded?!"

Quatre, though, was smiling.

"It's perfect."

"Whaaat?!"

By unspoken mutual consent, all of the males in the car waited for Relena's opinion. On her word, they would look for another, perhaps more suitable, place in which to spend the night.

She shrugged.

"It's fine."

The males relaxed.

"It's just for one night, anyhow," Heero said, and waited for Raymond to release the door-locks.

Relena smiled and stretched.

"It really doesn't bother me."

Duo shrugged.

"Ohhhhkaaaay. Let's go in...but into what, who knows."

Quatre chuckled.

"I'm sure they'll be able to accommodate us."

"Sure. But what will the neighbors say? Five guys and a girl...oooo, the scandal. It might bring tourists, though. This neighborhood could use 'em."

"Oh, stop worrying, braid-boy," Wufei half-joked.

"What did you call me?" Duo hissed.

The door-locks suddenly popped up, as did the back hood.

"Oh, stop it, you two," Relena said firmly.

"But he started it," Duo protested.

"I don't care, just stop it."

Quatre had a quick conversation with the driver.

"I'll let you know," he ended it with.

"Okay, sir. We'll be waiting."

"Thanks again."

"No problem."

"Right. Miss Relena, you and Wufei come with me. Trowa, Duo, Heero, check the neighborhood out. For tourists," he joked.

Duo grinned wickedly.

"Come on, guys, let's see some scenery."

"What scenery?" Trowa wanted to know, but Duo was already out of the car and away.

Relena exhaled.

"You'd think he would have at least carried one of the bags."

Wufei muttered something under his breath, then got out of the car.

Heero glanced at his back.

"It's okay, it's not much, and besides, it'd slow him down."

"I wonder how Hilde puts up with it?" she huffed.

Trowa smiled at her.

"I'll bet she's tamed him somewhat. He is a softie, underneath it all. But come on."

Relena froze. She had the sudden feeling that someone was going to be the victim of a cruel joke.

No, they wouldn't do that. The situation's too serious.

Still...the feeling refused to fade away.

But rather than mention the feeling, she allowed Quatre to escort her out of the car.

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