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"Dirty Job"Written By: ExecutiveShrimp Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing, it belongs
to Bandai, Sotsu and associated parties. Written for pleasure not
profit. Rating: NC 17 Warnings: Violence, angst, Lemons, Limes Pairings: 1x2x1 Summary: Duo is a masterful pickpocket and skilled but small-time con artist who always chooses to play it safe. When his best friend owes the wrong people a lot of money, Duo get pulled into a high-stakes plot to rob thirty-something billionaire Heero Yuy. The only way to succeed and save his friend is to push his own boundaries and get way too involved.
"Dirty Job" Chapter Five Never before had it been such a challenge to get dressed. There was so much pressure on his shoulders that he got it in his head that if his outfit wasn't perfectly appealing to Yuy, the effort would be doomed to fail. He had some nice clothes stemming from his favorite con of two years back, when he would frequent upscale clubs and pick pockets while he let horny men and women grind their hips against him. That streak ended when he noticed bouncers were starting to warn patrons upon entry - one of them was even kind enough to warn him of this loathsome thief. He had never gotten rid of the clothes, hoping they would benefit him again at some point, for some kind of job. "God, I knew you were gay, but I didn't know you were this gay," J.J. complained. He lay sprawled on Duo's bed. He had insisted on coming over and helping his big brother 'mentally prepare' for the evening, but all he succeeded in doing was getting under his skin. "It's important!" Duo barked in return. "Just pick those leather pants and whatever shirt." "I can't, those pants are black." J.J. observed his closet and noted dryly: "Pretty much all your clothes are black, so what?" "Yuy doesn't like black," He muttered, biting on the cuticle of his thumb thoughtfully. "I'd ask how the fuck you know that, but..." He shrugged. Even though he hadn't actually asked, Duo explained anyway: "In none of the pictures I have seen of him he is wearing black. That might be a coincidence, but given how common the color black is in clothes, suits especially, I think it means something." "Maybe black just isn't a good color on him," The younger one joked, faking a stereotypical lisp. "I have to do whatever I can. If he happens to have some kind of negative association with the color, I don't want him to transfer that association to me." J.J. snorted. "If he hates everyone who wears black... that would explain why he has no social life." "The goal is to make the best possible first impression. Not wearing black is probably only going to be a tiny percentage of the whole, but I have to try everything." J.J. rolled his eyes and absentmindedly leafed through the frayed and coffee-stained copy of Forbes Magazine, pausing at Yuy's six-page-spread. On the cover he was wearing a dark blue, perfectly tailored suit, with light blue dress shirt. The two images between different segments of the interview were semi-candid pictures of him sitting at his desk, gazing at his spectacular view pensively and accepting an award at a fancy gathering; in both cases his suit was grey. In any other picture Duo had been able to find on the internet or in other magazines, Yuy was always dressed in an expensive brand suit which was never black. Not even his ties were black. He had no idea what to make of the fact that his car was black, but he had to go with his instincts. Eventually he decided on a dark blue pair of jeans and a purple shirt with three buttons at the collar. He kept staring at his own reflection with a grimace, as if he had hoped to compose an outfit that would make the billionaire fall instantly in love with him. WuFei had always liked the shirt on him, he remembered morosely, he said it made his eyes look amethyst. "You look good," His little brother assured him. He pulled his braid over his shoulder and gripped the end tightly in his fist. There would be no possible way to hide his braid for this particular con and it added to his anxiety. With his hair out to be seen, he felt exposed, not only because it was a dangerously recognizable feature for a con-artist to have, but also because he had gotten so used to hiding it, it felt intimate to show anybody his hair. "I just got a text from Neil. He's downstairs with the car." He took one last, deep breath and then turned away from the mirror. "Yep. Let's go." They headed downstairs, running into his transgender neighbor on the way down who complimented his looks, even snapping her fingers to express her approval. J.J. made her day by using the fleeting moment to hit on her. Duo wasn't sure if J.J. really didn't care about his neighbor still being part male or if the younger man actually just kept forgetting what Duo had told him about her and was blind to the Adam's apple, the narrow hips and the fact that she was a foot taller than he was. In any case he was shaking his head and for a moment even a smile appeared on his lips. Outside a big black truck was idling. The two of them climbed into the car, Duo in the passenger seat and J.J. in the back. Neil sped off without so much as a greeting. Halfway into their journey he thought to ask: "How are you doing?" His tone was mechanical and detached. He didn't really care about Duo's feelings but was only probing to see if he had to play nice to boost his confidence. "Fine." He really didn't want to talk - he didn't want to discuss his 'game-plan', because honestly there was no plan and he couldn't help but feel that he should have been more prepared than he was. "Feeling confident?" They passed the first million-dollar-house. He shrugged in response. "Sure." Neil looked at him sideways, calling his bluff. He exhaled and reached into the pocket of his jacket for a cigarette and a lighter. "Could you please not do that?" The braided American blurted as the Russian put the cigarette between his lips. "What?" He mumbled innocently. "Aren't you also a smoker?" "Not right now." He eyed the cigarette enviously even as Neil obediently tucked it away. "Yuy isn't a smoker, or so it appears. Non-smokers typically think smokers stink and it seemed like Dante wasn't allowed to smoke in the house. I haven't had a smoke since I showered and I don't want my clothes or my hair smelling like it." "So you're just not going to smoke whenever you are meeting with him?" He shrugged again. "That'll do wonders for the nerves," He observed bluntly. Neil was right, as the craving for nicotine increased, he would only get more jittery. But when they were still together WuFei would always chastise him about stinking clothes and he wouldn't even kiss him right after he had had a cigarette. He couldn't risk doing anything that might put Yuy off. He stopped the car just around the corner from the back gate. Duo took a moment to calm himself, his heart was racing. If he screwed up that meeting, they were all as good as dead. Even for Neil this job had become more than an audition. If he succeeded he would be promoted to general, but if he failed he would be worthless to Tsubarov. From the look in his eyes Duo could tell the man was acutely aware of the fact that he had aligned his fate with that of J.J. and Duo. "Good luck," Was all Neil said, his voice steady. "Yeah, bro, break a leg." Duo nodded and determinedly exited the vehicle. Stuffing his hands into the pockets of his jeans, feeling awkward and unsure, he rounded the corner and approached the gate. Madam Letitia Rose - or 'Letty' as she was known to Neil - had provided him with instructions. All he had to do was walk up to the gate and inform one of the guards he was Yuy's 'nine-thirty'. The guard would call to the house and confirm with the butler if the 'master' was indeed expecting anyone. He wouldn't have to wait long until the gate would be opened and he would be taken by the arm and escorted to the house as he had seen happen to Dante last week. Then he was expected to give the guards a valid ID and they would do a quick background check. He wouldn't get his ID back until the end of the appointment. Letty had told Neil that other pimps had informed her that sending in a professional with a bad record would be a particularly bad idea. They would be thrown back out onto the streets before ever getting into the same room as Yuy. Minor felonies wouldn't be an issue, she had been told, but serious things that security deemed might make someone a threat to their boss would be a deal breaker. Luckily, Duo's record was clean. Letty told him not to bother to take a cellphone with him, or any other electronic device, those would be confiscated. Even though posing as a cheap hustler was as classless as he hoped his life would ever get, the mystery and the secrecy did make him feel like an international spy. The smirk that that simple, silly thought brought to his face inspired him to play pretend for his own sake. In reality he could argue that he was some sort of spy, albeit without the allure and sex-appeal that the movies portrayed. He waited for the guard to make his call to the house. He killed time and calmed his nerves by focusing on moving the weight of his body back and forth from the balls of his feet to his heels. A jolt passed through his body violently when the gate started moving with a sharp screech. A big arm reached out and thick fingers pressed into his shoulder when he was pulled into the yard strongly. As they had been warned his ID was taken by one guard while the other walked him down a path of cobble stones that lead around the line of trees and shrubs and towards the house. Duo observed the yard carefully as he was led through it. He tried to pinpoint any additional security measures, but all he could see was a perfectly landscaped garden, dotted with ornamental lights that gave the surroundings a magical appeal. Meanwhile the guard was hissing instructions at him: "You will not touch anything. You will not leave the room you are taken to without permission. You will obey any and all instructions given to you. You will not touch master Yuy without his permission." He continued to warn him: "The premises is swarming with armed security, if you try anything funny, you will have to live with the consequences, but trust me when I tell you that you won't be living with it for too long." "Gotcha," Duo quipped in response to the barely veiled threat. They walked around the last of the big trees and the garden opened up before him. He struggled to swallow a big lump in his throat as he was taken closer and closer to the mansion. The building redefined the word 'sprawling'. It was enormous. It was only two stories tall but with its incredibly high ceilings it was an immense structure. The back of the house was vaguely shaped like a 'U', with both sides of the mansion protruding a little more into the yard than the center. The two sides both opened up to large decks, the one on the left was shaded with a canopy of evergreen vine. Right in front was a rectangular pool with the azure blue water glowing thanks to the submerged lighting. The façade of the house was dressed in sandcolored limestone. The tall windows were framed by white sills. The windows in the middle part were modern and floor to ceiling, with a tall chimney cutting right through the center. He was walked past the pool to the open, right deck and using his keycard the guard unlocked double doors leading into the sun room. The interior of the room was entirely white and only sparsely decorated save for the plethora of potted plants. He was rushed further into the house, the sunroom opened up to a long corridor that seemed to run throughout the entire house, connected to smaller hallways and countless of rooms. Some of the doors had glass panels, other openings were archways, but at their pace Duo didn't have the time to properly peek into any of the rooms that they passed. Nor could he make sense of any of the many paintings they walked past. Yuy truly was a hoarder of modern art. They ended up in the main foyer - making Duo wonder about all the hassle since obviously an entry through the front gate would be more direct, but then he was distracted by the white, marble floor that reflected the blue and purple of his clothes and then his eye was caught by the dazzling shimmer of the modern chandelier overhead. The foyer - as he presumed it was called - was two stories tall and as impressive in its grandeur as the rest of the house. Twin stairs of red oak steps wound their way up with a gentle curve. Right underneath where they met were the double doors back into the hallway where he had come from. Straight ahead from the stairs was the front door, surrounded by floor to ceiling windows overlooking the inner courtyard with illuminated water fountain. Right in the center of the room was a small, decorative table with a lavishly blooming orchid. Two other doors led to the left and right front wings of the mansion which encircled the stone courtyard. He was flabbergasted. It was so big he wasn't even really sure if it was still beautiful. It was so excessive, so vast, so empty. He couldn't imagine anything other than greed causing someone to seek out a home like that. As soon as the thought came to him of how many homeless youth could be put up in a house that big, he was disgusted and angry. The rift between the rich and the poor was so unfair. Why was the work of this Yuy guy so important that it would earn him that much money? Why should his paycheck be bigger than the paychecks of single moms working double shifts at the diner and old people working well beyond the age of retirement because the banks lost their pension in the economic crisis? He shook his head. He shouldn't be thinking those things, those angry thoughts would only make it that much harder to connect with the impossibly wealthy man. One of the doors to the side opened and a stately man, with dignified, silver hair, stepped into the foyer and a stereotype was proven to be true when the man introduced himself as the butler - complete with posh, English accent. He could have sworn the older man introduced himself as "Karen" Gerard, but he had probably misheard. Duo's body reacted with a shudder at hearing the man refer to his employer as his master, the same way the dutiful guards had done. In spite of the instant negative associations with the title, the man seemed proud of his function in the household and with straight shoulders and smooth gait he led the guest through the door into the right wing of the estate. The guard was dismissed, Duo realized his background check must have come up clear. The room to the right of the foyer reminded Duo of old-fashioned, exclusive men's clubs, where accomplished businessmen would end up after a leisurely game of golf to smoke an expensive cigar with pompous friends, but then with a modern twist. An entire forest must have been cut down for the sake of the polished hardwood floors, the wooden paneling on the wall and the massive coffee table in front of the six foot tall fireplace lined with beams of oak. The contemporary leather furniture was a warm shade of caramel and the smell was still new, not a single crease or crinkle in the seats. There was only one, tall window in the corner, looking into the courtyard. "This is where you will wait for master Yuy," The butler announced. "Wait for him?" "He has yet to arrive home from work. Please, do not wander elsewhere." He promptly took a step back, back into the foyer, and pulled the double doors shut. "Well Hell..." He looked around, looking for clues that would be of help to him, but the room was totally impersonal. He was tempted to open one of the four doors other than the one he knew connected to the foyer, but he had taken notice of the inconspicuous security camera on the ceiling in a corner and he was certain someone was monitoring him. Getting bored pretty quickly he dropped down into one of the chairs facing the fireplace, frowning at the creaking sound of the pristine leather. Clearly the seats weren't used much. There was a bowl of fruit on the table but it was arranged to be ornamental. People are starving in this city and he wastes food by putting it on display, Duo thought bitterly and he resisted the urge to mess up the composition of oranges, mangos, kiwis and a singular pineapple at the center. He cast his gaze up at the large, abstract painting above the fireplace. He never could make much sense of modern art. At least the vibrant colors of orange, yellow and petrol blue were a welcome change amidst all the tones of brown of the wood, but other than that the painting was meaningless to him; nothing but lines, colored panels and careless brushstrokes. He noticed the absence of a clock and instantly regretted not wearing a watch. He had no concept of time, so when the glare of headlights came through the window he had no idea how long he had been waiting. Not wanting to come across as overly eager, he remained seated, only looking over his shoulder to see the car come around the fountain and stop right in front of the front door. He rolled his eyes when he watched the driver get out the car to open the door for his master. He saw nothing but a glimpse of a dark suit. He faced forward and listened intently. The butler opened the door for Yuy and curtly informed him that his guest was waiting for him. Yuy didn't say anything. Suddenly, the doors opened and Duo stiffened in his seat. With his back towards the door he couldn't see anything and inexplicably he was too afraid to turn around, even as he realized how foolish he must have looked, frozen like that. Yuy appeared in his peripheral vision as he moved to one of the other doors. He couldn't stay still any longer, he turned his head and looked. Yuy was in a dark grey suit, perfectly fitted to his body, not a single crease in it. His blue tie was still tight around his neck. His hair was brushed back with a generous amount of gel to keep it under control and glossy, it was the way he always wore it, it seemed. He was holding a - black - briefcase by the handle in his left hand. He was squeezing the handle so tightly his knuckles were white. It was then that Duo recognized the man was staring right back at him. As casually as he possibly could he got up out of his seat and took a few tentative steps towards him. "Hi," was all he could manage and he felt unbelievably stupid. Yuy opened his mouth, as if he was about to speak, but he ended up only nodding. He opened the door, took a step inside and then gestured for Duo to join him, holding the door open for him. He quit biting his lower lip as soon as he became aware that he was doing that and he followed Yuy into his home office. Walking past him he was only two feet removed from the man. Yuy was roughly his height and had a similar built and the billionaire was his age, something he still couldn't fully wrap his head around. Superficial as it was, it added to the currently short list of things they had in common. The office had a similar style to the 'waiting room', with the same hardwood floors and modern, square wooden panels covering the walls. Windows on one side provided a view of the beautiful fountain in the courtyard. In the wall opposite the windows was an archway opening up to a two-story library. A set of glass doors connected the office to a spacious conference room all the way in the front of the right wing. Yuy's car just drove past it and headed down the driveway. The man placed his briefcase on his expansive, glass desk in the center of the room and took a seat in his desk chair. Duo just stood there, appropriately awkward with his hands in his pockets. "This place is incredible." He was careful with his phrasing, he had to be as truthful as possible. Saying the mansion was incredible was not a lie. Yuy was concise with his reply: "I have work." It was all he said. He booted up his laptop and opened up his briefcase, arranging papers on the desk with such precision Duo thought it was anal and obsessive-compulsive. He realized the billionaire was seriously just going to sit there and work and he struggled not to panic. What was he supposed to do? Yuy looked so focused, trying to engage him in conversation would probably only serve to annoy the man and that would not help the conman's objective. He jumped when the butler entered unannounced with a tray that he placed on his master's desk; wonderfully smelling espresso. The butler turned to Duo and asked if he wanted anything. After stuttering for a moment, confused and disappointed by how things were going, he managed to say no. "Feel free to take a seat, right here," He gestured at the black leather couch in the room, "Or in the library, and you can help yourself to any book of course." He offered a friendly smile, as if he sympathized with the guest and then left him alone again with his employer. Duo remained standing there for a little while longer, scratching the back of his neck. Yuy's fingers flew over the keyboard of his laptop, only occasionally he would pause to glare at the papers in front of him. Eventually Duo wandered in to the library, purely compelled by boredom. The library was quite a magnificent sight. The lights were low, creating interesting shadows on the hundreds of shelves and on the backs of thousands of books. Three sturdy ladders on tracks provided access to the shelves high up in the two-story tall room. In the center of the room was a desk with two comfortable chairs. Only one wall was not covered by bookcases, floor-to-ceiling windows provided a calming view of a small, closed off area of the garden. Most of the space was taken up by a large pond, complete with waterfall - which was the running water Duo had heard the week before, when he walked around the property. The water was lined by playful shrubbery and bamboo and thanks to the underwater light he could see colorful fish swimming around. He let himself be distracted by the cathartic movement of the fish before realizing he should redirect his attention to Yuy. So he went back into the office and sat down on the leather couch. It, too, creaked, as if to complain; it wasn't used to being sat on. He blushed when he realized he hadn't even tried to introduce himself, so he started stiffly: "I'm Duo... by the way... In case you were wondering." He couldn't prevent his tone from getting sour. However, it felt like a victory when the man looked up from his work. He suppressed the shiver that threatened to travel down his spine. Yuy's eyes were cold and unreadable. "My name is Heero Yuy." He forced a chuckle. "Yes, I'm well aware." His face contorted in displeasure when the cobalt blue eyes focused on the screen of his laptop again. The man wasn't giving him anything to work with. All he could tell was the obvious, that the Japanese man was uptight and all about control. Even as the hour was starting to get late, he sat with his back straight and his shoulders stiff. Duo felt uncomfortable just looking at him, with the white collar of his shirt and his blue tie tight around his long neck. Yuy wasn't the guy to 'loosen up'. All work and no play. Trying to lighten the atmosphere between them, he tried jokingly: "So, I could have sworn your butler said his name was Karen. But that's a woman's name..." When Yuy wasn't responding, not even letting on if he was listening at all, he asked directly: "What's his name?" He tensed up with fear when he noticed the corners of Yuy's mouth turning down, his eyes tightening and his brows furrowing nearly imperceptibly. The businessman was getting annoyed with him, but Duo didn't know what to do and what Yuy expected of him. If he was so busy and didn't want to be disturbed or distracted, why would he invite someone over? And pay for their company no less? He lay his head on the back of the couch and looked up at a panoramic painting in black, white and grey. It made even less sense to him looking up at it up-side-down. Black, vertical shapes jutted up from the bottom of the painting, the edges faded and undefined. They gave him the creeps. One was taller than all the others, nearly reaching the top frame, but not quite. The background was done in gradations of grey. Trying not to let his defeat show, he continued bravely - perhaps naively: "You're a real fan of modern art, huh?" He shot upright when Yuy bothered to look at him again, only briefly, before turning his gaze up at the painting hanging on the wall above Duo's head. "I saw a lot of paintings in the hallway too... I'll admit, I'm not much of a connoisseur." He scratched the back of his head sheepishly. It was hard to speak with his heart beating wildly in his throat. "So uh... what is this one about?" He nodded up at the painting. Yuy answered monotonously: "No one can answer that for you." He looked down and started leafing through a folder. Duo pursed his lips. Goddamn this stubborn man! "Right, abstract art is all about what the individual sees in it." He jumped up from his seat to properly inspect the painting. With his back turned to Yuy he couldn't see him, but he couldn't hear the sound of the pages being turned anymore, nor did he hear the infuriating clacking of the keyboard, so he hopefully assumed the man was watching him, at least mildly interested. "I see... shadows. And one is taller than all the others. He's looking down on them." He frowned, his analysis was depressing and might give away too much about how he felt about the obscenely rich. In a very real way, he saw Yuy as the towering shadow, tall at the expense of the others. "And they will never be as tall as him, never as good as him, even if the difference isn't even real, because it's just shadows-" He gritted his teeth when he heard fingers ticking on the keyboard again. Fuck this guy! What was he supposed to do? He plopped back down into the couch, rudely putting his feet up on the seat, but Yuy didn't even care enough to look, and if he had he would have seen Duo's pitiful pout to boot. He didn't know how long he sat there with his arms crossed in front of his chest until the butler entered and announced it was time for him to go, which meant the three hours were up and it was eleven thirty. "Please come with me." Yuy didn't even look up from his work as Duo followed the butler out. In a last ditch effort he wished him a goodnight and then the butler pulled the door shut and guided him to the foyer with gentle pressure to his shoulder. Surprisingly, the older man said: "I apologize for my master. He is not the most effervescent person." Duo let out a single chuckle. The grey-haired man was kind and his care for his employer was genuine. Still, he felt sorry for the man, for having to apologize for the behavior of his boss. They stopped in the foyer and the butler got an envelope from the table, right next to the potted orchid. He offered it to him. "Your payment, for your trouble." Duo looked at the envelope. The payment was two-thousand dollars he had been told by Letty, an unusually large sum, but of course it wasn't enough to pay off J.J.'s debt - which Duo had effectively raised to five million dollars. It was his last chance to make an impact, so after quickly calculating his options he pushed the butler's hand back, rejecting the envelope. Shaking his head he explained: "It was no trouble. It doesn't feel right having him pay me, I didn't have to work for it, after all." He must have been perplexed but he barely let it show. "Are you certain?" "Yeah, it's fine." A guard came through the doors underneath the stairs, ready to escort him back off the premises. He glared at the big man when he took him by the arm. Looking back over his shoulder at the butler he said: "Tell mister Yuy I hope he finds what he is looking for." After a thoughtful pause he nodded. "No need to squeeze so tight. I bruise like a peach, you should know," He said to the guard as he was guided back through the hallway, through the backyard and to the gate. Unceremoniously he was handed back his ID and shooed through the gate. Once he was back on the street his anger started to bubble. He crossed the street, headed for where Neil would be waiting for him to pick him up and muttered under his breath: "What a fucking little cunt. He just fucking ignores me practically all night and then has his servant-man pay me off?" He quieted when he spotted the big truck idling by the sidewalk. His instinct was to run, but that was childish and uninformed. Although he did fear Neil's reaction when he would have to confess to him how badly the evening had gone. He climbed into the passenger seat and cut Neil off mid-sentence when he asked him how it went, demanding a cigarette. Neil complied and Duo could see his fingers shaking as he held the lighter to the smoke between his tense lips. The conman inhaled the smoke deeply and breathed out slowly. Neil appeared reluctant to repeat his inquiry, drawing all the right, unwanted conclusions from Duo's demeanor. "What did he say?" Was what he eventually asked, trying to gauge how definitive the defeat was. "Not much." He rubbed his eyes, resisting the urge to cry. "About fifteen words, that's it." "Anything else?" He was referring to his 'mind reading skills'. "The man is inscrutable". "What does that mean?" J.J. asked quietly from the back seat. "It means we're fucked, little brother," Duo replied, his tone inevitably bitter. Neil lit a cigarette for himself. "So there's no chance? No chance at all?" "Maybe one in a million." He scoffed. "One in a billion." With his shock making way for anger, the Russian asked: "Are you sure you tried everything? What did you say? What happened exactly?" "Fuck! There was nothing I could do, okay?! Getting him to talk was like pulling teeth and whatever I said doesn't matter because he wasn't really listening anyway! He's a spoiled brat who thinks he's too good for anybody else." "We already knew that! But you said you could work with it! You said it would be fine!" "Oh, fuck you, Neil, we both know what we were up against!" He shook his head furiously. "I knew it. I should have sent you in as the gardener." "Assistant-gardener." "Whatever! Whatever! Anything would have been better than this! Fifteen words, Maxwell, Goddamn it!" "I don't suppose you could tell where the vault was this single visit?" J.J. asked stupidly. The two men in the front didn't even bother to respond, continuing to yell at each other. "What are we supposed to do now?" Neil demanded, "If we don't know where the safe is, everything else is pointless. I stuck my neck out for you!" He gripped the leather steering wheel so tightly his knuckles were white and his arms were trembling. "I'm sorry," Duo grumbled. "Fuck sorry!" He kept shaking his head. "As soon as Tsubarov finds out the mission is doomed to fail, we are doomed." "Then I suggest we don't tell him until we know for certain. Let's wait. Maybe Yuy will call for me again." He snorted. "Don't take this the wrong way, but why the Hell would he? What makes you any different from all those other guys he didn't give a flying fuck about?" Duo shrugged. He didn't know, he wasn't certain if he was any different, but he would go crazy if he didn't allow himself to hope. "I didn't accept the payment..." Neil stared at him with a quirked eyebrow. "Don't tell me that was your master plan from the start." "There was no plan, okay!" Duo admitted. "But I stood there, about to be paid, and I thought to myself: of all the guys he has ever had over, I bet none of them refused their money at the end of the evening. It was the only thing I could do to distinguish myself from the rest. I figured everything else must have been tried before, because you can bet your ass every hustler in town would want this gig to be permanent. He pays good money and he doesn't even want to molest you in return." Neil asked the hard question. "What do we do now?" "We hope we got lucky. Extremely lucky. And that Yuy has a thing for- fuck... long hair or something. In the meantime, we keep looking into other options." "What other options?" He bit back sarcastically. "We will have to think of some." He added as an afterthought, but an important one at that: "And not let The Bear know." He shook his head, "No, he definitely can't know." Finally he started the car and drove them all home. During the meeting the next day they feigned optimism to fool The Bear, but Neil slipped Angelica a note to inform her of the stark reality of the situation and they arranged an additional, secret meeting between the four of them the day after that. After an intense brainstorm and several arguments, they agreed that technological-genius Angelica would attempt to hack into Yuy's security's system from the outside. She warned that she had previously discarded the task as impossible, but vowed to give it her best effort. If she could tap into the video-feed they had hope of catching a glimpse of the safe on camera if there was a camera installed in whatever room the safe was in. Duo had noted a lack of visible security cameras in Yuy's home office, but that didn't necessarily mean there was no electronic surveillance at all. Neil would cast another net and hope one of his many contacts would have more information on the location of the safe after all, or at least knew the person that did. They had reached a point where they were all willing to go as far as to kidnap a person and persuade him to reveal the exact location of the safe. The thought made Duo sick, but he figured this person had the option to save himself and just spill all. If they had to resort to immoral tactics, it would be the man's own responsibility. Duo tasked his little brother with the fairly unimportant chore of continuing to observe the estate. He didn't think it would actually benefit the con in any way, since their spying effort had been mostly useless, but he needed J.J. to focus on something and not get in anybody's way. In the meantime, Duo would continue to prepare himself under the presumption that Yuy would call on him again. He would do further research into Yuy. Letty - or Letitia Rose, or whatever - had agreed to meet with him and tell him everything she had heard from the other boys she had sent in. Neil had insisted on her cooperation, after claiming that she owed him didn't convince her anymore, he agreed to pay her a tidy sum for any information she could provide. She was eager to assist, once an exact price for her insight had been negotiated. Everyone went their separate way and Duo met with Letty on Monday. He waited for her on his usual bench in the park by the church. She had wanted to meet somewhere both private and public and Duo figured that since he always felt safe by the church, it could have a similar effect on her. At the exact time they had agreed to meet he noticed a woman approaching him and she was not at all what he had been expecting. Based on the gravelly voice he had heard over the phone he had expected someone older, perhaps physically not very fit. Instead, the woman was quite the vision in a proper red dress and matching pumps that put her long, pale legs on display. She wore a hat, glamorously tilted to one side, and big horn-rimmed sunglasses. Her gait was long and elegant. She glowed with confidence. Letitia sat down next to him, very lady-like and well-mannered. She removed her sunglasses and hat, placing both in her lap. "Miss Rose." "Mister Maxwell," She retorted playfully and looked him up and down. She made an appreciative sound and remarked: "I would understand if mister Yuy does end up requesting you again. You are absolutely delicious." Suddenly her gravelly voice seemed to suit her anyway. He chuckled at her forwardness, it alleviated much of the tension. "We were all hoping you could tell us a little more about mister Yuy." "Honey, with what you boys are paying me for what little I know, I wished to God I knew more." "At this point anything will be of help." She started off with familiar stories of her employees going to meet him and being faced with the same kind of evening as the one Duo had shared with the billionaire. Most of them reported that he said extremely little, she recalled some even telling her he hadn't said a single word to them. In all cases the meetings took place in his office, Yuy was working and men paced back and forth between the office and the library. The billionaire was described as uninterested, aloof, curt and cold. The butler apologized every single time. Letitia confirmed his suspicion that no one had ever rejected the payment, but that they had tried about everything else to get his attention. One of them, she told with a laugh, had even stripped down to the buff right in front of Yuy. When the businessman finally took notice of the naked body standing at his desk he had matter-of-factly requested him to put his clothes back on, after which the butler came to escort him out of the house earlier than planned. While Letitia had a way with telling stories and he found he was amused by her, the information had little to no value and certainly wasn't worth what they were paying her. Bluntly, he confronted her with this after about an hour. She smirked. "Men, always in such a hurry to get to the good stuff..." He rolled his eyes. "Okay, okay. I have something juicy that might be of help. You told Neil that if you knew what mister Yuy was looking for, you might stand a chance?" "Yes." "I have heard of someone who knows precisely what mister Yuy covets." She paused for dramatic effect. Impatiently he waited for her to continue. "As you know, mister Yuy asks me for someone new every single week. For the entire eight weeks that I've been in contact with him it has been that way. But I have been told that it didn't start out that way." After another infuriating pause she went on: "Mister Yuy has been in contact with agencies for a number of years now. When he was still with the very first agency, rumors are that he requested the company of the same male prostitute every time. As I understand it, this man was invited to the Yuy estate every week for as long as a year." His interest was definitely piqued. "No one knows why mister Yuy eventually lost interest in him and started asking for different men each time since then, but regardless, for him to get invited over every week for a year might mean that he has the answer to your question; What is mister Yuy looking for?" "And you know where we can find him?" "I don't know his real name, nor where he lives. He might have even left town. But I know his working name and the agency he worked for. If I tell you that, will I have earned my paycheck?" She inquired sweetly. She was a savvy lady who knew what she was doing. It would be a challenge but perhaps the information would prove enough to find this man - given Neil's vast connections - and even though he must have eventually lost the 'it-factor' that Heero was looking for, he did, at one point, have it and it would be helpful to talk to him. He would almost certainly have a lot more information on Yuy and if not, then hopefully he would know some more details about the house. "Yes," He consented after careful deliberation. "He had the name 'Calden Fox' and he worked for a Seth Ripley." She watched as he jotted it down in his notebook. "Now, Seth used to run a good business with a lot of high end clients. He has fallen from grace since then. But the good thing about hopeless types like Seth is that they are willing to do a lot of legwork for a fair price. He can help you find mister Fox." "What about you?" "Oh, I don't do legwork, honey. Not for all the money in the world." She smirked. "Right. Happen to know where we can find Seth?" "Sorry, I've earned my paycheck." She held out her manicured hand expectantly. "But I don't expect Neil will have any trouble tracking him down." He took a hefty envelope out of the inner pocket of his jacket and placed it in her awaiting hand. She thanked him and tucked the package into her tiny purse. "It was nice doing business with you, mister Maxwell. I'll let you know if mister Yuy's people call, asking for you." He nodded and then watched her strut off. The news of this Calden Fox sparked hope. Even though Yuy might never call on Duo again, Calden had been to the mansion so many times that perhaps, if asked the right questions, he could give vital clues to the location of the safe, whether or not he actually knew where it was. If he was even half as observant as the con-artist - and considering he was a hustler he was bound to at least be streetwise - he might have picked up on something. The midweek meeting with the other three was disappointing. Neil had reached out to his contact in Financial Security, the company that installed the safe, but he said there was no way of pinpointing who knew the details of the installation. They couldn't very well kidnap and torture the whole lot. It was a dead-end. Angelica's endeavor also proved to be in vain. She wasn't surprised and she reminded them several times that while she was a 'technical-genius', there was a reason Yuy ran a multi-billion dollar conglomerate and she was just a crook, to put it crassly. She was still confident she could hack into the system from the inside of the house, but she couldn't access the closed loop security without directly plugging into it. With a shrug of his shoulders J.J. confirmed what Duo had already guessed; that there was nothing to be learned from further watching Yuy, or rather: watching his car drive him back and forth between the two wildly different but equally impressive fortresses that were his office building and his house. To add insult to injury, Letty hadn't contacted Duo nor Neil, meaning Yuy had yet to reach out to request him, if he ever would. After a long, uncomfortable silence, the Russian wondered: "Seth Ripley, you said?" "Yeah... Does he happen to owe you a favor?" "I've never really met him. When his business was a success and he was a somebody, I was jail. He was a nobody before the years I spent in prison and he made himself a nobody again by the time I got out. He was a fuck-up before, certainly not somebody worth knowing. I heard of his success through the grape vine, but I knew it was only a matter of time." "So that's ten-thousand dollars' worth of dead end?" Duo chuckled bitterly, referring to the payment for miss Rose. "Not necessarily. Somebody will know him and know where he is. Somebody always knows." Duo had little faith. For Seth to have been such a doomed screw-up, he couldn't help but think nasty vices were involved. The kind of vices that could end up killing a man, especially a man who had nothing left to lose. He had known many people who inevitably drank or drugged themselves to death and most of them welcomed the escape. Neil got up from his seat with a tired grunt. "Let's all go home and get some rest. You especially, Maxwell. We might still get the call." Duo noted the lack of assurance in his tone of voice. "Yeah." He took a cab home, searching all his pockets to scrape together enough money to pay the cabbie. He was short fifty cents but the driver said it was okay. Duo got the impression he was excused because the man was getting impatient with him and he wasn't going to waste his time for fifty cents. He got the last beer from the fridge and sagged down into the cushions of the couch. He propped his feet up on the coffee-table, his muddy boots resting on the issue of Forbes, with Yuy's cover face down. There was a stack of books precariously balanced on the seat next to his, which had nearly toppled over when he careless fell onto the couch. They were textbooks about modern art. He had given up all hope on connecting with Yuy through his technological interests, he had tried but the texts were like Chinese to him. He wasn't faring much better with the dry perspective on abstract art. No matter how many paragraphs the authors could use to describe a single work, he still saw the painted canvasses as infantile - as in: come on! A toddler could do that! He didn't like the ambiguous nature of the paintings either. Most were left open to the interpretation of the viewer, but more often than not he felt that was a cop-out on the artist's behalf. He accused them of simply painting nonsense and then leaving all the creative work to the observer. The ones that did state clear subjects confused him no less, because he didn't see what he was apparently supposed to see - and how could he? There were just lines and blocks and dots! He even turned the books to look at some works from all angles, but he didn't see anything in them. It pissed him off. As good as he was at reading people based on simple, cryptic features, the paintings were a complete mystery to him. The information eluding him reminded him of Yuy. He was supposed to be seeing something, but he couldn't help but wonder if there was really something to see, if there was really anything more to him than the superficial brushstrokes; genius, rich, anti-social. Never wears black clothes but appears to like the color black anyway... He lit a cigarette and toyed with the end of his braid, gazing into thin air. He had never been an ambitious man. He had never wished to partake in any big operations. He had never desired to have his skills be challenged in such a way. The fact that he had no choice in the particular matter agitated him endlessly. He had long ago rejected the common lifestyle of doing things because he had to. It was a way in which many people lived their lives, obeying a number of authoritative figures from youth to seniority, from work to home; the mother, the father, the boss, the police officer, the law-maker, the wife... Duo had never gotten along with any kind of authority but now the cards had been dealt in such a way that he had no choice. All thanks to J.J. As much as he loved his adoptive little brother, the entire situation cemented Duo's standing perspective on emotional attachment; that it was dangerous. It was path towards disappointment, no matter which turn you took, you would end up in the same place, you would end up hurt. With that philosophy in mind, he couldn't blame Yuy for limiting his social contact to the visit of one professional a week and always requesting a different one each time. If you let people get too close, they will rob you of something, sooner, or later. WuFei had taken his heart. J.J. had stolen his freedom. Wallowing in self-pity he killed time flipping between the four channels that his television set could properly receive, without static. He drank beer and he slept a lot. His cheap watch was left in a drawer in the bathroom. Every time he looked at the clock fear and panic gripped at his heart because time was passing by and he had still received no word about the next Friday. Until all of a sudden he realized it was Friday. It was four o'clock, he noticed in the news reel, and it appeared highly unlikely the call would come, regardless, he showered and got dressed - picking his outfit with equal care as last time - and he waited. Hours later, when the phone rang, his heart jumped into his throat and he had to swallow it back down. He clamored over the back of the couch to reach for the phone. "Yeah?" There was a sigh, it crackled as it came through the line. Fuck. "It's ten past eight," Neil announced. "Letty just called. She has sent a new guy." Fuck. Neil heaved another sigh, also not knowing what to say. "Any word on Seth? On Calden?" He questioned desperately. "Nothing." Well... Fuck. Even through the phone Duo could tell the would-be general had to refrain himself from yelling at him in anger. He knew Neil blamed him for the failure, the man was probably more convinced than ever that he should have had Duo apply for that position as assistant gardener. Duo was still certain he had made the right call, or the best call, at least, but he understood and accepted Neil's indignation. He felt compelled to apologize, so he did. It was a mistake, the single, however genuine, word popped the fragile balloon that contained Neil's fury, like the prick of a needle. "You screwed up, Maxwell! I should have never trusted you! I was going to be a general! I was going to be set for life! Now, my life is over! If Tsubarov decides not to have me executed, it will only be because working me to death will give him more satisfaction! I will be a bottom-feeding lowlife!" "I was a bottom-feeding lowlife and I was perfectly content with that!" He shouted in return. "I didn't ask for any of this! I didn't want to work for Tsubarov, but you did, you made that choice! So don't fucking lay this on me. When you make your bed with people like that you are going to get fucked, whether you like it or not." The line was disconnected abruptly. He stared at the phone, fury bubbled inside him like magma and if the pressure would build any higher he would explode; and it would be even uglier than the lava he had already spewed. With shaking hands he put the phone away, barely able to refrain himself from chucking it against the wall like he had with the answering machine. If only he could disappear into himself and simply cease to exist. He stalked back to the coffee table and grabbed the magazine. He glared at the cover, but it didn't satisfy his rage. Like a mad man he started to scream at the two-dimensional image until eventually he settled for ripping the paper to pieces, tearing right through Yuy, who still seemed as unimpressed by his anger as he had been unimpressed with everything else about him. He realized, mortified at his unexpected arrogance, that he was actually insulted that Yuy hadn't liked him. He wasn't good enough, or so the entitled billionaire had concluded. That hurt his feelings, his vain, despicable feelings. How could Yuy make a judgment like that? Just discard him like that? As if the man himself was such a prize! Who could stand to be around someone like that? Who would want to be around that kind of barren personality? It wasn't fair that Yuy was in the position to throw people out, because if the roles were reversed, every single one of those hustlers he rejected would throw him out without any scrupulous. Just because he was rich, he got to play a TV talent show judge and press the red button at every performance? What made him qualified to decide who was worthy? Once the anger had subsided after running rampant for a while, he was relieved. He was relieved he would not have to be around that. He was relieved he didn't have to worry about what was expected of him if he had made it through the first round; if the second time he was expected to perform sexual acts. But to complete the rollercoaster of emotions he circled right back to fear. The planned con hadn't been a simple, straightforward solution to his problem, but it had been the only solution. He had been so overly confident that - in spite of everything - they would be able to pull it off, he had inadvertently raised a debt of one hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars to an even more insurmountable five million. He had let J.J. hit rock bottom and in his valiant attempt to tunnel them out, all he had achieved was get them deeper, get them closer to the hearth of Hell. He fell back down into the seat of his couch and stared at the jigsaw of pieces of paper; a mess much like his life; no amount of patience and tape could fix it. It was ruined. J.J. would get executed and Duo might too, which would be a kinder fate than working for Tsubarov for the rest of his miserable life - that exact fact made him worry the drug lord would prefer to keep him alive, to take pleasure in watching him squirm and suffer. To buy them all more time they fooled The Bear into thinking Yuy didn't invite someone over every week. Calden Fox was their last hope and they had to find him, but they all knew they wouldn't be given the chance if they confessed the truth to Tsubarov's guard dog. Although Duo feared The Bear was more perceptive than he let on. Sometimes he would catch him looking at him with a glint in his eye that made Duo worry The Bear knew they had failed and were scrambling to save their asses and he allowed them only because the sight of them running around amused him. They had arranged another meeting without The Bear on Thursday evening. Neil and Angelica were arguing about something. J.J. was curled up on the floor in a corner, passed out - he had been self-medicating more than ever that week, it had started to dawn on him that his luck had run out. Duo stood at the window and looked at the lights of Corbeau Park. There were always lights on at the Yuy estate, the house was probably never empty. How did you even rob a place that was never without supervision? He was jostled awake by a buzzing to his left. Neil's phone lay on the desk and was vibrating rhythmically. The Russian didn't notice, too caught up in his discussion with the feisty Latina who wouldn't give in. "Neil," The conman called. "Neil!" "What?!" Duo nodded at the phone. "Oh... thanks." "Yeah, sure, walk away," Angelica muttered, her arms crossed in front of her chest. "We were done anyway." She exchanged a meaningful look with Duo. Neil answered his phone, only stating his name curtly by way of greeting. Angelica joined the American at the window. "I don't mean to be insensitive," She started, "But this operation is over. At this point, it is a waste of my time." Duo nodded. He understood. Angelica wasn't in as deep as the rest of them, she could probably still walk away and he couldn't blame her for wanting out. "Look, this gig would have been amazing. But it's not happening and I got bills to pay, you know? I got a call about something else. I think I should take that job." He looked at her sympathetically. "I think you should too." She smiled sadly in return. "Anything J.J. and I could get in on?" He asked jokingly. "It wouldn't help you. It doesn't pay like this job would have. Nothing pays like this job would have." She sighed. Duo flinched when a big hand suddenly landed on his shoulder. He looked back at Neil and frowned at his odd expression, he didn't know what to make of it. "I hope you haven't made any plans for tomorrow." Duo's eyebrow quirked but he didn't dare to hope. "Free as a bird." "Letty just got a call from the butler. It appears Yuy was disappointed by last week's company and the butler suggested that he should give you another try. And he agreed." Angelica's jaw dropped. Neil let a smile spread across his lips. "Maxwell, you have another date with Yuy tomorrow." The woman squealed with excitement, so loudly that J.J. shot into an upright position with a tired, confused frown. "We're in! We're in!" Duo cocked his head to look at her. "I guess this means you won't be taking that other job?" "Fuck that! Like I said, nothing pays like this gig." Duo nodded, his excitement and relief dulled considerably by concern. It was hardly a knock-out, it was only the second round, but at least he still had a fighting chance. Bring it on, Yuy.
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