He walked down the hallway. He was a contrast in colors. His chestnut colored hair and bright violet colored eyes stood out against all black clothes. He was wearing a black T-shirt, black jeans, black boots and a long ,black leather duster that ended up at mid-calf. He had his hands tucked into his front pockets as he walked. His shoulder holster gently poked at the jacket as he walked. He looked at the bike outside the office door.

* She' s here. * He opened the door and stepped in. He looked at the coat rack and saw her black leather, fringed jacket hanging there. He took off his duster and hooked it on a hook. The office looked deserted. * Where is she? * He looked around the office and spotted a pair of boots sticking out from behind the desk straight from the door.

"Hilde?" He asked, as he saw the boots move and a head pop up from behind the desk.

"Hi, Duo." The dark blue-black haired girl said as blinked her cornflower blue eyes at him. He crossed the floor in two steps and pulled his wife and partner from the floor. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her. He leaned down and caught his lips with hers.

"You left early." He said when he released her.

"Yes, I had a few thing to do this morning, so I left early. I bought coffee." She giggled, as she waved the can at him.

"Can't do without coffee." He said, as he looked around the office. "Any donuts?"

She grinned at him and pulled a box from the top of the desk.

"Mmm........Donuts." He said , lovingly, then turned to Hilde. "So, what were you doing under the desk?"

"Oh," she said, " I dropped this. "She held up a small box and handed it to him. "It 's for you ,lover."

"What have you done, Hilde?" He looked at her.

She smiled at him and said, " open it, Duo. It's just my way of saying thank you for helping me get my PI license and my gun permit."

He hefted the box in his hand, and grabbed her hand with his free hand. He pulled her close to him and encircled her waist. "I have a better way to thank me!" He leaned down and kissed her. She wrapped her arms around his neck. He released her and whispered, "I love you, Hilde."

She leaned in on his shoulder and whispered back, "I love you, too, Duo."

He let her go and looked at the box. "so ,since you don't think the other way is appropriate right now, let's see what we got here."

Hilde leaned back against the desk as the love of her life opened the gift. Duo's face lit up as he pulled out the silver watch. It was quite fancy. It had a black leather band and a few diamonds in the face. It had all kinds of gadgets on it.

"Aw, geez, Hilde. It's great. It's the nicest thing I've gotten in a long time.....well, besides you. Thank you." He pulled her to him once more. He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and put on the watch. "You are coming home with me after work, right?"

"Yeah, I'll leave the bike here. Well, I suppose we better get to work." She went to the coffee machine and poured two cups, then fixed them like they liked it. She handed one to Duo as they walked into the larger office. Duo set his cup on the desk and went to the filing cabinet and started to pull out several files.

Duo turned and looked at Hilde, "You know this will be great, us working together and all. * I will be able to protect you better. *

"Yeah, it will be great."

He dropped the files down on the desk, then flopped into his chair. He reached for his coffee.

"You know, Hilde, we may not be able to solve all these cases."

"Why's that, Duo?"

He opened a folder and showed he bits of the case. "Look......."

She leaned over and read some of the information. "Oh, I see. It's a cold case. NO leads after this date. And there's nothing we can do? Can't we find anything on the Internet?"

"Well, maybe. Sometimes, people expect too much from us. Find a loved one that's been missing for 10 years is fairly hard. Now, here's one we can solve." He pulled a file from the bottom of the pile. "Actually, it's solved, we just have to report to the person who hired us."

"Oh, he's not gonna like this every well." She picked up the pictures that spilled from the folder.

"No, he's not, and I'll probably get punched in the nose for all of it, too."

"How 'bout you let me take this one? I bet he won't punch me." She smirked at him. "And it will be good experience for me." She reached down and picked up the photos. She went to a filing cabinet and pulled out a few manila envelopes. She slipped the photos inside and sealed it. "Do I have to collect?"

"He paid half. He still owes $1000.00. Hilde, I'm gonna call Trowa. I don't want you to go alone and I have to go down to the station and talk to Captain Po. This case I've got needs extra attention."

"OK. Call Trowa. He'll be my backup, if the guy gets outta hand."

Duo picked up the phone and dialed Trowa Barton's number.

"Hey, Trowa! Are you busy? Can you come and help Hilde with a case? I have another case I gotta take care of." There was a pause. "You can? That's great! Could you bring Catherine if she would like too. We could use her to answer the phones and keep an eye on the office." Another pause. "Ok. See ya in a bit. Bye."

He looked over at Hilde as he put the phone back on its cradle. "He and Catherine are on their way."

Hilde nodded and slipped her coffee.

Duo gathered all his files and folders and stood up. He looked at his wife and grinned at her. "OK, Hilde. I gotta go. I'll see you later, babe." He leaned down and kissed her. "And be careful!"

"Ok, Duo. Later, lover. You be careful, too."

Duo grabbed his coat and headed out. Hilde sat back and waited for Trowa and Catherine.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Duo went to the public library first. The librarian saw him and waved him to the basement. He was beginning to be regular now. He went to the basement and went directly to the microfilm machines. Not too many people still used them, so he was alone in the quiet basement. He went through several years of articles, until he found the information he needed. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small notebook and pencil. He took notes from the artical,then shut down the machine and headed back up stairs. He waved at the librarian and headed to the police station. He needed to talk to Captain Po. He knew that she had pertinent to this case. He hoped she would help him......last time she was pretty pissed off at him last time. Well, Hilde had been pissed ,too. She had called him a damn fool, for going without backup. He smiled when he thought about that, then remembered Sally's tongue lashing he had received. He shivered at the thought. As he entered the police station, Commander WuFei Chang met him.

"Duo Maxwell!" He spat at him, "Captain PO doesn't want to speak to you. GO HOME!"
"Hey, WuFei. Nice to see you too. How do you know she doesn't want to see me?"

Captain Sally Po opened her office door and roared over the din. "BRING MR. MAXWELL TO MY OFFICE!!"

WuFei glared at Duo as he went into Sally's office. "Asshole" WuFei said , under his breath.

"Chang." Sally warned as WuFei nodded and turned away, still mumbling under his breath. Sally watched WuFei go back to his desk. She turned toward Duo.

"OK, Maxwell. What do you want?"

"Uh...well..." "Spit it out! I have better things to do than baby-sit you!"

"OK! OK! I got a cold case, I really could your help on." He reached into his out side pocket and pulled out all the information he had. Sally looked at him, then looked at all the stuff he had, She turned away from him and went to a file cabinet. She brought it over him and dropped it on the desk.

"This is all the information that you asked for. Now take it and get out. And Duo? You be careful. This was an unsolved case, and I lost 3 good men chasing it. Good luck to you!"

Duo looked at Sally, and wondered what was really wrong with case. As he looked at the file in front of him, and asked her, "Uh...Sally why didn't you solve this case?"

She glared at him , then sighed and sat at her desk. "Let's say there was a lot of money behind it and it was hushed up by some very powerful people. Very powerful people. This could get you and Hilde killed, OK? So, you watch your back, Duo. And if you need me you come and find me. You got that? Don't be hero on this one, Duo! You hear me?"
"Yes, Ma'am."

Duo picked up the file and went out of Sally's office. * What are we getting into? * Duo was beginning to have doubts.

Hilde and Trowa walked up to the door of the small white house. She arranged the papers in her hands and knocked on the door. A tall muscular man came to the door and peered at them.

"What do you want?"

"Mr. Buckly? My name is Hilde Maxwell, and I have some information for you....about your wife. May we come in or do you want to discuss this out here?"
He opened the door and let them in. He lead them to the kitchen, where Hilde handed him the papers. He leafed through them and glared at her. Then , he continued to look through the pictures and muttered to himself. "Damn bitch." He looked up at Hilde, and said, "I still owe you what about a $1000., right?"

"Yes, sir."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out his billfold. He handed her 10 $100 bills.

He then looked at her and said, "thank you. I knew the bitch was cheating on me. Now, I have proof."

"Your welcome. I'm sorry to be the barer of bad news."
"Are you happily married?"

"Yes, sir."

"Does he treat you good? Do you treat him good?"

Hilde nodded and he answered her, "Good. Keep it that way."

Hilde and Trowa stood up and Hilde shook his hand. They left the house and headed to the car. Hilde looked back and said to Trowa, "I hope he doesn't do anything stupid."

Trowa and Hilde went back to the office and Hilde paid Trowa from the petty cash and thanked him for his help. She told him that Duo would call him, but he could hang around if he wanted. Catherine looked up from the desk and shrugged.

"We'll hang around for awhile."
Hilde nodded and said, "make yourselves at home." Hilde went into Duo's office and sat at his desk. She heard the TV click on. She knew Trowa would stay until Duo returned.

Trowa looked up as Duo came into the office . He looked at him and nodded, then watched Duo courageously. Duo went to a drawer and opened it. He pulled out several boxes of bullets and a couple of clips. He checked the boxes and then filled the clips. These he dropped into his coat pocket. He dumped a bunch of loose bullets out and dropped them into the coat pocket. He pulled his semi-auto Colt .38 from his shoulder holster and checked it's clip. When he was satisfied with it he returned it to the holster. He then hunted through the rest of the bullets until he found some for Hilde's snub nosed .38 special.

"What are you doing, Duo?"

"I talked to Sally Po today, and she said that this missing person case was dangerous. She said to watch our backs. Trowa, I suggest you and Catherine stay way from us as much as possible. I promise to call you if we need you to help, OK?"

Trowa nodded , then turned to Duo. "You be careful. You call me."

Hilde looked at Duo.

"Do you really think......"

"I honesty don't know, Hilde, but why take chances."

Chapter 2
~~~~~

Several Days Later

A blonde young man came into the office. He saw Hilde sitting at the outer desk. He looked at her and smiled. " Hi, Duo Maxwell in?"

"Yeah, just a minute." She got up and went into the large office. "Duo, someone's here to see you?"

"Let him in and you stay, too.."

Hilde let the young man in. he came in and stood in front of the desk. He had a air of arrogance about him. He stuck out his hand and said, " Quatre Raberba Winner."

Duo stood up and said, " Duo Maxwell and my partner and wife, Hilde Maxwell. How can we help you, Mr. Winner?"

"Well, " He started, " I need you to find someone for me. She disappeared with something that belongs to my boss, Treize Kushrenada. My ass is grass if I don't find her and the item. I have some information for you. Can you help me?"

Duo took the papers and skimmed through them. " Yes, we can help you. Sir, our expenses are..."

" Money is not an object. I'll pay you five thousand dollars now. Another five thousand when you find her and another five thousand for the recovery of the item."

Duo's mouth almost dropped open. Hilde's hand squeezed Duo's shoulder almost painfully. "OK, we'll take your case, Her names Dorothy Catalonia, right?" Duo asked, as he looked through the papers that Quatre had given him. He found a picture of Dorothy. " Will the eyebrows give her away." Duo chuckled. Hilde hit his arm.

Quatre pulled out his checkbook and wrote out a check for five thousand dollars, and gave Duo a phone number to call when he found Dorothy. " Thank you Mr. and Mrs. Maxwell."

"Don't thank us 'til we find her."

After Quatre left, Duo stood up and grabbed Hilde in his arms. "Hot damn, babe!!!! We need to celebrate!!!! We'll get a bite to eat tonight." She grinned at him and hugged him back.

Quatre Winner walked to his car after speaking the Maxwells. * Damn it, Dorothy! What have you gotten me into? * He climbed in side and told his driver to take him home. He thought about all that Dorothy had done. He liked her and she had betrayed him. Or, had she? He was so confused. He had to be careful around Heero Yuy. Heero wouldn't think twice about killing him or anyone else who got in his way, that included Relena Peacecraft. Quatre hung his head, what was Treize going to say about all this? Maybe he could get the bonds back before anyone knew they were missing. If Heero had his way, he'd keep them. Quatre knew he had to be careful.

Duo and Hilde were walking down the street from "The Greasy Bucket", a place they liked to eat at. It wasn't the fanciest place, but it had atmosphere. They held hands and talked quietly to each other. As they came to the end of that sidewalk, two shots rang out, hitting the brick wall above Duo's head, shattering brick and sending the tiny sharp shards all over Duo and Hilde. One piece gashed Duo's cheek. As Duo crouched down, he pulled Hilde with him and put her between himself and the wall. He pulled his thirty-eight from it's hidden holster and waved it around.

"DOWN, EVERYONE!"

The few people on the street dropped down and laid prone for a few minutes. After a few more tense moments, everyone got up and went about their business. Duo and Hilde got up and started to go to their car when she looked and saw Duo face. " Oh, Duo, you're bleeding. Hold still." She said, as she dabbed at it with a Kleenex. She looked at wound and decided it was just a scratch.

Running foot steps stopped them from continuing on their way. Two uniformed officers stopped next to them. The shorter of the two, shook her head and said, "I shoulda known it would be you two. What happened?"

"Hey Officer Noin," Duo said, "We weren't doing anything. We'd just come out of the Greasy Bucket and this happened."

"Yeah, yeah, Maxwell, we heard it all," said the blonde officer with officer Noin.

"Come on, Officer Marquise, Honest." Duo put up his hands in protest.

Both officers looked at him, then Noin asked, "Are you working on anything we should know about, so we can get out of your way?"

Duo looked at them thoughtfully and said, "nothing too big, missing person cases."

He thought about the other one , that was closed.

Zechs looked around the building and examined the bullet holes. He turned to the other three and said, "well, looks like this is over." To the crowd of people, he said, "the show's over ,folks, go on home. As for you two, you better get going, too."

Duo grabbed Hilde's arm and pulled her away from the officers. He whispered to her, "we'd better go before they call Sally and she chews my ass again."

Hilde just grinned as they hurried to their car.

When they got home, there was a message on their machine.

"Look. You need to stop looking for me. I don't want to be found. If I have to, I will repeat tonight and someone will get hurt! And it won't be me."

Duo and Hilde looked at each other.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Relina Peacecraft walked up to the door of the Maxwell Detective Agency and opened the door. She looked around the office and spotted Duo at the small desk in the corner. He looked up at her when she entered the office.

"Can I help you?"

"Are you Duo Maxwell?"

"The one and only."

"Good, I hope you can help me. I'm being followed."

"How do you know?"

"Well, I guess I don't, but I see this person all the time everywhere I go."

"Well, it could just be a coincidence."

"Yes, perhaps, but I don't really think so."

"OK, tell me what you know."

Relina related her story to Duo. He listened till she was done, then looked at her, thoughtfully.

"Yeah, we can help you, Ms. Peacecraft."

Relina sighed a deep sigh of relief, "Thank you very much. Can you start right away?"

"Yes, I'll have my wife take of this when she returns to the office."

"Wonderful. Oh, and his name is Heero Yuy."

"OK. Thanks , Ms. Peacecraft."

Relina stood up and shook Duo's hand and turned to go," Oh, do you want paid now or later?"

"Doesn't matter."

Relina nodded and handed Duo $500. He took the money and followed her to the door.

Relina hurried down the hall to the elevator. * I hope you know what you are doing, Heero."

Duo was lost in thought, when Hilde returned from her errand.

"Duo?"

"Hmmm?"

"I found a million bucks in the alley."

"Hmm?"

"I said I found a MILLION bucks in the alley."

He looked up at her and said, "what?"

She laughed at the look on his face, "what were you thinking about?"

"Oh, a new case we got. It think you can do it. A woman is being followed and she wants us to find out why."

"Cool. I got some information on Dorothy. She's staying at a downtown fleabag called, 'The Empty Nest'. She's been there about a week, keeping a pretty low profile."

"Good," Duo said, "I should be able to go talk to her today or tomorrow."

"Duo, there is another problem."

"Eh?"

"You know, the other night, when we were shot at." Hilde paused, getting her thoughts together. "I think that we are looking for Mariemaia Kushrinada."

"Yeah, I kinda think that, too. You know, we could be in way over our heads, this time."

"Well, I guess we'll just have to muddle through. I don't think Traise will let us off the hook. Or , for that matter, either will Lady Une."

"Yeah, you're right." Duo said, leaning back in his chair. Duo handed Hilde the notes he had taken when talking to Relina. Hilde looked over the notes, and gasped, "Duo, do you know who Heero Yuy is?"
I've heard the name before but I can't place it."

"He's Traise Kushrinada's enforcer!"

He looked at Hilde and wondered what the hell they had gotten into, how they were going to get out of it alive.

Chapter 3
~~~~~

Hilde had been watching Relina for a few days, thinking that this was a total waste of her time. Nothing was happening. Heero wasn't following her . If he was, he was very careful. As she watched Relina, she noticed she was acting a little odd. She watched Relina walk down the street. She looked both ways, the stepped back from the curb. Hilde gasped and almost stepped out of her hiding place, when she was someone grab Relina from behind. She saw Relina turn and wrap her arms around Heero Yuy!

* Oh, shit! * Hilde thought. She stayed in her hiding place as she watched the couple carry on. She was even more shocked when Quatre Raberba Winner came up to them.

* Oh, shit, oh, shit! We've been had! * Hilde waited for them to go their separate ways , then followed Heero Yuy.

While Hilde was following Heero, Duo had found the room where Dorothy was hiding out. He rapped lightly on the door. The door opened slightly.

"Yes? What do you want?"

"Ms Catalona? I'm Duo Maxwell. I was hired to find you. May I come in and talk to you?"

She opened the door wide enough for him to slip in. She led him to the small table by the window, and sat down. Dorothy looked at him and asked, " Who hired you?"

"Quatre Raberba Winner."

"Did he tell you why?"

"He said something about what you stole from him. Something that was his boss's."

"Did he tell you all of it?"

"What?"

"Well, I guess I will tell you all of it, sense you are now involved." She stopped for a moment, then continued. " I took the item in question, to protect Quatre. He is involved with very bad people. I was going to turn the bonds over to Traise, and explain everything to him, but someone came into the picture and wanted the bonds, besides the other two."

Duo frowned and asked, "What kind of bonds?"

"Negotiable."

"How much are we talking?"
"One billion dollars."

"Who else is involved in this?"

"Well, I'll tell you the two most dangerous ones. Heero Yuy and Relina Peacecraft."

"WHAT!!!!?"

Hilde had to tell Duo as she followed Heero. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed up Duo's number. It rang and rang. "Come on , Duo. Pick up." Hilde muttered as she followed behind Heero. She closed the connection when he didn't answer. "Damn, damn, damn!"

She stop dead in he tracks, when she realized where they were headed. Heero was heading for the hotel where Dorothy was. * How did he know where she was? * She thought as she watched Heero go to the office of the hotel. She kept her eyes on him as he left the office. * Quatre Raberba Winner! Damn!! *

She saw him bound up the stairs and disappear. She flipped her phone open and dialed Trowa's number.

"Trowa! We need help! We're at the hotel where Dorothy is. Hurry!"

She hung up , just as she heard a gun shot split the quiet night.

Meanwhile..........

"Listen, no matter what happens, this key must not get into Heero Yuy's hands. Go to the old train station. There you'll will find a locker with this number on it. Open it and take out the bag. Take it to Traise."
Duo nodded as he pocketed the key. He turned to speak once more to Dorothy, when the door burst opened. Duo jumped up only to have Heero punch him in the face and send him spralling to the floor.

"Where's the bonds," Heero snarled at Dorothy.

"I don't have them here. Do you think I'm stupid? I'll take you to them."

Duo moved slowly, reaching for his gun. Heero turned and pointed his hand gun at Duo. He looked Duo in the eye and fired.

Duo felt the bullet slam into his shoulder and push him to the floor. He grunted in pain as he fell back.

Heero looked at him, "Don't you even twitch. I'll kill you in a heartbeat." He grabbed Dorothy's arm and pulled her from the room. Duo moaned and tryed to get up, but his head was swimming . He laid back down on the floor, and sighed. * Damn, I'm in deep trouble here. I hope Hilde is OK. *

Hilde ran toward the sound, and saw Heero dragging Dorothy behind him.

"Hey!" She yelled at Heero. " Let her go!"

Heero stopped in front of Hilde and backed handed her with so much force it knocked her to the ground. As she fell, her right arm was twisted under her body and she heard a sickening pop as she hit the ground.

"Ugh." Her vision swam as she tried to get up. She knew she had broken her wrist. Oh, God, Duo!"

She felt someone grab her arms and pull her to her feet. She looked into Catherine's face.

"You OK,?"

"Yeah, but my wrist is broken., and my face hurts. Oh! Duo! I heard gunshots! Trowa! I saw Yuy go to the second floor!"

Trowa took off running to the steps, bounding up them two at a time. He searched until he found the room with the door broken in. He stepped in and say Duo on the floor with a small amount of blood pooling around his shoulder. Trowa went to Duo and looked at the wound, then helped Duo to his feet.

Duo moaned, "Hilde?"

"She's here, Duo."

Hilde and Catherine walked in the room, and Hilde went to Duo's side.

"Duo." She couldn't hide the catch in her throat, and she was fighting tears that were threatening to fall. She took a deep breath and tryed to compose herself. "Come on, we gotta get outta here before the cops get here. Let's grab Dorothy's things." * Damn you, Heero Yuy! We will beat you yet. *

Trowa half carried , half dragged the semi-conscience man down to his car. He turned to Catherine.

"I' ll take Duo home. Take Hilde to the hospital and get that wrist fixed , then meet us at their house. We'll figure out what to do after that."

"What about....."

"I'll take care of Duo. Now, go!"

Some where across the street, a pair of eyes watched through a pair of binoculars. The person was not at all happy at whet she was seeing. * Damnmit, dad! You didn't have to send that sob after them. I just wanted the bonds, not anyone hurt. Will, shit, It's time I ended all this. Then I can help the Maxwells and Dorothy. * She continued to watch as the group split up and went their separate ways. * Damnmit! What were you thinking, Dad? Wait till I see you!! *

Chapter 4
~~~~~

Heero pulled Dorothy into Relina's apartment, and shoved her down into one of the kitchen chairs.

"Where are the bonds? "He said, monotonely, as he glared at her.

Dorothy swallowed, and tryed to stay calm. She was failing. This man frightened her. He had the look of a heartless killer. "I.....I put them in a locker at the old train station." She paused, "but I don't have the key."

"Where is the key?" He hissed at her.

"I....I... gave it to Maxwell."

"Damn it! You stupid bitch! Relina! Call Quatre! Tell him to get his butt over here! I better go to the station and wait for Maxwell." He turned to look at Dorothy. "I had better find him. This time I will kill him. You had better hope I catch up with him, or I'll come back and kill you for spite."

Relina looked at Heero and asked, "When will we be out of here?"

He turned and growled at her," as soon as I get those bonds! We'll go nowhere till I get them.! Then, I'll tie up loose ends! There will be no witnesses!!!!"

Relina looked at Heero and glared at him, then turned and stomped into the other room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~

When Trowa got Duo home, he found some medical supplies. He knew Hilde had some there, with them owning a salvage business. He patched up Duo's shoulder, and waited patiently for the girls to return. He keep on eye on Duo, who was dozing on the couch, and one eye on the door. He was extremely nervous about all of this. Trowa's stood up, when her heard the door knob rattle. He reached for his gun, the visibly relaxed, when he heard the girls' voices. Catherine came in, followed Hilde. Hilde looked at Trowa questionably. He pointed to the couch. She went around the couch and sat by Duo. He looked up at her and then looked away.

"In sorry, Hilde. You weren't suppose to get hurt." He whispered in to her hair and she snuggled in to his arms. As he was going to speak again, she placed a kiss on his lips.

"Shut-up, Maxwell!"

Duo hugged her , then looked at Trowa and Catherine. "I'm sorry, guys. I didn't know it was going to get this crazy. I've got to get those bonds before Yuy does."

Trowa looked at Duo, "actually it has been fun. I'll go with you to get the bonds. You're in no condition to go alone."

"Will you girls be OK alone for a while? Be sure to lock up behind us and don't let anyone in. We won't be long."

Duo stood with a little help from Hilde. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly. He looked down into her eyes and sighed. He reached up and gently fingered the deeping bruise on her face. He whispered to her, "He will pay for this, somehow."

"Duo, you be careful. Don't be reckless."

The two guys headed out to go get the bonds and Hilde locked the door behind them. Hilde and Catherine sat at the kitchen table, drinking coffee and chatting about all that happened. There was a soft knock at the door. Both girls looked at each other, as Hilde stood to answer the door. She peeked out the window and saw a woman she didn't recognize. She opened the door a crack and asked,

"May I help you?"

"I think maybe you can. Are you Hilde Maxwell, wife to Duo?"

"Uhh, yes I am, but......."

I am Mariemaia Kushrinada. May I come in?"
* Ulp.* "Yes....." She opened the door wide enough to let the woman in.

"Is your husband here?"

"No, he had to go pick something up. I suppose you would like to wait for him?"

Mariemaia smiled and sat down at the table, and said, " Yes."

Mariemaia broke the silence when she asked Hilde, " You have been working on my case, right? "

Hilde looked at Mariemaia warily, wondering what she was up to, "Yes."

"If I help you with a small problem, pay you what you are owed , would you forget you ever saw me. I mean, close this case and let it end?"
"I guess that would be all right, but we better ask Duo about it. I'm sure he would agree. What about your parents, they are behind this?"
"I'll take care of my parents. And I'll take care of everything else.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~

Meanwhile, across town, Duo and Trowa made it to the old train station. Trowa watched the area warily, as Duo walked down the lockers looking for the number on the key. He found the number and tryed the key.

It opened and he saw a large satchel. He reached in , grabbed it, and pulled it out. He set it on the floor and opened it. He leafed through all the papers and shook his head, * I f I wasn't honest, this would be a windfall, but I am honest and these don't belong to me. * He closed the satchel and picked it up and nodded to Trowa. They left the station together. As they got to Trowa's pick-up truck, they heard someone yelling at them.

Duo turned and saw Heero Yuy running toward them, branishing a gun .

"Shit! Let's get the hell out of here, Trowa!!" Duo yelled as he jumped into the truck. Trowa started the truck, slammed it into gear and peeled out.

Heero seeing that they were not stopping, began to fire at them. Trowa and Duo ducked as the bullets pinged into the truck body. Trowa glared at Duo.

"I'll pay for the damage!!!! Just get us outta here!!! Can we lose him?"

As they turned the corner, a bullet crashed through the back window, sending a small shower of glass on them.

"Damnit, Duo! Now you owe me a window!"
"If we get outta this alive, I'll buy ya a new truck! Now, quit complaining and drive!"

Trowa looked at Duo with disbelief.

"What?" Duo looked back at Trowa, " Hey, I'm good for it. We get these bonds back to someone, I don't even care anymore. Just not to Heero Yuy. It's the principle of the thing now!"

Trowa drove at breakneck speed until they got back to Duo's. He slammed on the breaks and they both jumped out and ran for the house. Duo stuck his key in the lock and opened the door. He stepped in, dropped the satchel and stopped dead in his tracks. Trowa came in following right behind Duo and crashed into him, sending both men spralling to the floor. Hilde stood up and looked at the men on the floor.

Hilde took a deep breath and said to Duo. "Mariemaia has a proposal for us, and I think maybe we should take her up on it."

Duo stood up and stared at Mariemaia. "What...How.....I don't get it. What the hell is going on here?"
He finally yelled when he got his composure back.

"She just showed up."

"Well, this better be good, because Heero Yuy is probably on his way here and he'll kill us as to look at us."

Mariemaia chhuckled, "So you fear my father's enforcer, do you?"
Duo looked at her and growled angrily, "No, I don't fear him, but I have other people who are important to me, and he would hurt them to get to me. So....."

"I understand, I would fear for my loved ones , too." Mariemaia looked at the satchel on the floor, "Is that what I think that is?'

"Yeah, well, I made a promise to some people and I'm returning them to Triase."

"Oh, who did you make that promise to, may I ask? Was it Dorothy Catalonia and Quatre Winner?'

Duo looked at her totally dumbfounded.

"You know that Quatre works for my father, and Dorothy works for me. She can take care of herself. My father won't miss these bonds and I'm going to take them. They are my future away from here. I just want be away from all of this , go where no-one can associate my name to anyone. I want to be free to live my life as I see fit. Now , let's all retire to the living room and wait for all the players to get here." She smiled at them and motioned the four of them into the living room. She pointed to the couch and made the four of them sit down. "I suggest you keep you hands away from all your guns. I will take them if I have to, but I don't want to do that."

As they sat down, Duo glared at Mariemaia, " just what do you want to accomplish here?"
"Well , for one thing, to keep you from getting killed. It was never my intention to get anyone hurt. I just wanted the bonds. That's all that I wanted. Now, I have a huge mess to clean up. So sit back and relax, everyone will be here in a couple of hours." She tossed Duo the remote. He clicked it on and frowned at her.

Chapter 5
~~~~~

Two hours later...........

There was a small tap at the door. Mariemaia looked at Trowa and motioned him to open the door. He went to the door and opened it. Dorothy Catalonia and Quatre Winner came in warily.

"Mariamaia!" Dorothy exclaimed , happy to see her boss.

"Where's Heero Yuy?" Mariemaia asked.

"I don't know, for sure. He went out after those two," she said pointing at Duo and Trowa, "and he didn't come back."

Mariemaia looked at Duo," Did you kill him?"

Duo looked back at her and snorted, "he was quite alive when we were dodgin' his bullets."

Mariemaia looked back at Dorothy, "And Miss Peacecraft?"

"In the car, do you want me to get her?"

Mariemaia nodded and Dorothy left the room. A few minutes later, Dorothy brought in a struggling Relena. She was tied and gagged. Mariemaia pulled the gag and smiled at Relena, "not one word from you, Ms Peacecraft. Please go sit down."
Relena , seeing who was in charge sat down without a sound.

Quatre sat quietly, dumbfounded at the turn of events. This is Mariemaia. What was she doing here. She must have been sent by Treise. I am so dead, and so is everyone else in this room. * He looked around the room and saw the black satchel sitting on the floor. "Duo, you found the bonds! You've saved......"

"SIT DOWN, MR. WINNER!" Mariemaia shouted at Quatre. "as you see, the bonds are now in my possession and they will stay in my possession."

"NO! You can't! They are my life! If I don't get them back to Treise, I'm a ........"

"Not to worry, Mr. Winner. I'll take care of my father. You on the other hand have to worry about someone else far more ruthless than me."

There was a deafing silence in the room as all realized what Mariemaia had said and what she was implying.

"Oh, don't look so glum people. I'm pretty sure I can buy off Heero. He is such a greedy little bastard." She paused, then said, "Hmmmm........I'm surprised he's not here yet."

Then was a small sound in the dark hallway and Heero stepped into the light, "I'm here." The soft monotone voice said.

"Oh, goodie! Now we can start the party."

"They all have to die, " Heero said as he looked around the room, he eyes stopping on Duo. He glared at Duo and slightly smiled.

Duo almost cringed, it was the creepiest thing he had ever seen. Duo looked away from Heero's glare. Heero walked over to where Duo was sitting and grabbed his shirt. He pulled Duo up off the couch and slapped him acrossed the mouth, then dropped him . He then leaned into Duo's face and said softly, " This is far from over ,no matter what she says. I'll be back to finish this between us." He looked over at Hilde and touched her face. Duo's face became dark and he almost stood, but Hilde's hand gripping his arm stopped him.

"Yes, Maxwell, we could do this now, but who else would get killed? You don't want anyone killed, do you?" He asked, as he looked at Hilde. Duo got his meaning and pulled Hilde to him, he still glared at Heero. Duo put his hand to his mouth and wiped away the blood that had trickled from the corner of his mouth. Heero stepped back, and returned to the wall.

Mariemaia shook here head and said to Heero, "You are an ass, Yuy. Leave them alone. If you're mad at anyone, it should be me. I'm the one who blew your little money game. I knew all along what you and Ms Peacecraft were up to. So did Dad. We hatched this little plan and I sent Dorothy to get the bonds. You see, these bonds are mine and I'm taking them. If you want a share, then be a good boy and behave yourself. You will be rewarded quite well. Well, what do you say, Heero? Relena seems to be willing to go along."

Heero looked over at Relena, then back to Mariemaia. He nodded.

Mariemaia clapped her hands together, and said, "Excellent! Maxwell, phone?"

Duo pointed to the kitchen and Mariemaia left the room. Heero looked at Duo and Duo knew he would be back.

Quatre looked at the people in the room. It seemed that Heero only had a hard-on for Duo. That made him feel a little better, but he still felt guilty. He saw Trowa sitting in the lazyboy, seemly relaxed. The girl, Catherine, was fidgeting. She seemed extremely uncomfortable. He, then, looked at Duo and Hilde. Duo's face was very dark, there was deepset anger there. Hilde almost looked like she could cry, but seemed to holding together well. He shook his head and placed his head in his hands.

Mariemaia came back into the room and smiled at everyone. "Well, boys and girls, everything is well in the world. You two," she said , pointing to Trowa and Catherine, "You may go. There is a check on the table for your trouble. I think you find that it will satisfactorily replace your truck." She then turned to Quatre," Mr. Winner, you may return to your job tomorrow. You have not lost your life or your job. Dad's says you are to valuable to him to try and replace you. But..... I would be careful about the friends you choose in the future." She glared at Heero and Relena. She turned to Duo and Hilde. "You also have been very lucky in all of this. Dad says thank you, and now I will get my life free of my parents' past and future. And you also have a check on the table to cover your expenses. I think it will be also satisfactory."

Duo asked ,as she turned to leave," so you were never really missing, this was just away to get Heero out into the opening? You parents knew where you were all the time?"

She turned to Duo and smiled at him. "Yes, you and Mr. Winner were pawns in this little game. You did quite well, for amateurs. Well, we had better go. Come on, Heero, Relena. We have bonds to sort out and split up. Oh and Heero you will be leaving these two alone, right?

Heero nodded , but his look to Duo told him a different story.

As Mariemaia left the house, with the other two in tow, she left one bond on the table. Maybe she was feeling a little guilty or maybe a little generous.

As soon as the door closed, Hilde was on her feet and locked the door. She leaned against the locked door.

"Holy shit!! I am so glad that is over! I can't believe how easily we were sucked into that!" She looked at Duo and walked up to him. " You know, honey, we have to be much more picky about these cases. You know, make sure that there are no big names involved next time, OK!?" She put her arms around him and hugged him.

He laughed and said to her, "god, I'm sorry, Hilde! If I had know what kind of clusterf**k this was gonna be, I think I would have passed."

"Yeah, me, too. Come on , let's go to bed. We're safe as long Mariemaia has her leash on Heero. We'll worry about the rest later." She pulled him gently toward their bedroom.

Chapter 6
~~~~~

Hilde gently pulled her lover into their bedroom. She slowly unbuttoned his shirt and pushed it off his shoulders. It dropped to the floor and pooled around his feet. She pushed him down on the bed. She slowly unbuttoned her shirt, one button at a time , teasing him as she went. She slowly took it off and dropped it on the floor. He watched her intently as she stripped for him. She removed her bra and moved close to him. She straddled his waist and leaned up to kiss him, letting her breasts rub up his chest. She then kissed him. She kissed his jaw and then down his neck to his adams apple. She moved down his chest kissing him , till she reached the center of his chest. She licked him all the way to his adams apple then back down to his chest. Duo shivered and moaned under her gentle tongue. She went to one of his nipples and licked it. She nipped at it, then move acrossed to the other. She did the same to that one. She move on down his chest , kissing and licking him, until she reached his belly button. She licked around it and reached for his pants snap. She undid his pants and with a little help from Duo pulled them off him and threw them on the floor. She pulled his boxers with them, leaving a very naked and erect Duo, just waiting for her. She took him into her mouth and gently moved up and down working his g point.

"Oh, god, Hilde!" Duo moaned. She let go of him and knelt up so she could remove her pants and panties. She then slid her body up over his touching him everywhere. She stopped inches from his face and kissed his chin. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her up so he could grab one of her breasts in his mouth. He teased and sucked on the nipple, as he slipped his fingers down between her legs. He rubbed her nub, until she was almost to the point of cumming . He pulled his fingers out and pushed her down on to him. She groaned as he was pushed in deep. Duo closed his eyes and thrust upward. Hilde began to enjoy the rise as she began to move along with Duo. As they both reached the point of no return, they screamed out at the same time. Hilde laid down on Duo's chest and felt his arm snake up around her back and crush her to him. He kissed her forehead.

"I love you, Hilde."

"I love you, too, Duo."

She snuggled to his chest, almost trying to get inside him. She reached down and pulled the blankets up over them as she closed her eyes. She was extremely content at this moment. Duo slid his hand up to the center of her back and sighed. At this moment, even after all that had happened, everything was right in the world.

end part one

Detective Wing Part Two

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