Forgotten4

[lilac310]

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Mailto: Melissa
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Chapter 4 ? An Offer You Can?t Refuse?
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There was a forceful knock on the wooden door of the Vice-Foreign Minister?s office as Ms. Wilson, Relena?s personal secretary hurriedly walked inside the room and informed her of the bad news.?
?Miss Relena, the ESUN committee had already filed and issued a subpoena for treason against you. Here?s the letter.?? Relena took the letter from her secretary and opened the envelope to read its contents. After doing so, she then ordered her to call Mr. Edward Sullivan, her family?s private lawyer. ?Emily, call Mr. Sullivan and inform him about the situation.?? ?Yes, Miss Relena.?? And just before her secretary disappear behind the door, she again called out, ?And one more thing, please do tell him to immediately file a not guilty plea and to meet me here in my office at exactly three in the afternoon. Thank you.?? Emily Wilson nodded and quickly walked outside the room to do what she was told.
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Two hours later, Mr. Sullivan arrived in the ESUN main building, wearing his usual black garb matched with a black attach? case, which was stuffed with different kinds of documents. He briskly made his way to his client?s office while glancing at his Rolex wristwatch that displays four o? clock. He sighed and nervously opened the door.?
?I truly apologize for being an hour late, Miss Relena. It was very traffic in the 23rd Street because of somebody?s car accident.?? ?I understand, Mr. Sullivan. So, could we now get started?? Relena gestured towards a nearby black leather sofa at the receiving room of her gargantuan office and took a seat across the lawyer. ?I will now get straight to the point and I want you to give me an honest answer. How many percent is my chance to win this case??? ?To tell you frankly, with a diminutive information I know about the circumstances, I think it would be harder for me to tell you the probability.?? ?But can?t you just give me even a simple assessment of what you think about my case??? ?As far as I can see and evaluate, you have a very little chance of getting past this dilemma unless you have a very strong evidence that will prove your innocence.? The lawyer suggested while removing his eyeglasses and looked directly at Relena to search her eyes for any reply.?
?As of now, I don?t have any proof. My words and principles are the only thing I have against them.?? ?Your words are not enough Miss Relena, you must understand that. As you know, the prosecution team has a firm evidence of everything against you. Whether its forged or not, we must at least have a counter attack against that data.?? ?But I swear, I really have nothing. Only one thing is for sure, Mr. Donenfeld and Mr. Cortamaga just want to ruin my integrity for their own political interest. They framed me up.?? ?I know. I know. So, what are we to do now?? Mr. Sullivan asked agitatedly.?
?I should be asking you that question, you?re the lawyer anyway.?? ?Okay, I have to admit this. We can?t do anything to solve this problem permanently unless you have evidence but we can prolong the processing of the case for only a short period of time, if you want me to. That?s the only thing we could do now to remedy the situation. I?m sorry Miss Relena, but I guess you are aware of treason?s equal punishment.?? ?Yes, I know. Death.?? *****
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?Calm down Zechs, calm down.? Lucrezia Noin comforted her fianc? while lightly massaging his shoulders.?
?How can I calm down? My sister?s life is on the line. If she will not overcome this crisis, then she?ll gonna die.? Zechs irritatingly replied as he stood up and walked over to the fridge to get a glass of water.?
?I understand. Now, why don?t you call her up and ask her what you can do to help.?? ?I?ve already tried that Noin but no one?s answering the phone.? He reasoned out.?
?Hon, don?t you think that?s kinda weird. Pagan should be at the Peacecraft?s Mansion to at least answer the phone.?? ?You know what I?m thinking. Someone possibly wiretapped the phone.?? ?What? Why? But haven?t you tried to call in her cellular phone?? Noin asked a little puzzled.?
?Yes, I tried but unfortunately it?s off. She?s probably in a meeting right now.? Zechs said and then added, ?But I have this feeling that something?s not right. I can sense that they want to sabotage my sister. To make sure that she won?t be getting out of this mess alive.?? *****
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After her conversation with Mr. Sullivan, Relena felt a slight tinge of hopelessness inside her but she?s a fighter. Everyone knows that. But the question was still hanging in the air. ?How long can she be strong??? Even though troubled, Relena still hasn?t neglected her duties as Vice-Foreign Minister of ESUN, so she continued on to work and read all the stacks of papers, folders and documents that has been left untouched in her table for the past two days. Seconds, minutes and hours ticked by but Relena still hasn?t reached even half of what was supposed to be done. It?s already an hour before midnight but she?s still stuck in her office.?
?Omigosh, I better get going. It?s almost midnight.? Relena gasped as she noticed the time but then realized too lately that her chauffeur?s on sick-leave and her car?s in the mechanic for monthly tune up. ?Duh, what a nice timing for things to go this way.? She remarked sarcastically. ?Anyway, I?ll just get a taxi. Who says I can?t ride one of those these days, anyway??? Relena strode down the empty hallway quickly, exited the building and went into the roadside to wait for a cab. But the sudden turn of events were in opposition to Relena?s welfare. Instead of a taxi, a black sedan came to a halt in front of her as a man wearing a black bonnet forced her inside the vehicle and covered her mouth with a drug-soaked handkerchief. Then everything went black.?
She woke up groggily in a damp, musky and unfamiliar basement, tied up in an old wooden chair. Her eyes were covered with a piece of cloth and her mouth was plastered with a masking tape. She could hear her captors talking about something but she couldn?t even make a single word out of it. They?re just plainly sounds that keep on vibrating in her eardrums like a ghostly lullaby. Death was definitely in the vicinity of the room but no one knows for sure what will happen next.?
?So, our dear princess is finally awake. Did you have a good sleep?? A bearded fat man asked Relena as he lifted her chin with a calloused finger. ?Sorry, I forgot that you wouldn?t be able to speak with this tape plastered in your mouth.? Mr. Wayne said as he removed the annoying thing.?
?What?s the meaning of this?! I demand an explanation.? Relena shouted angrily while desperately trying to undo the cord that was tightly fasten around her wrists.?
?Still stubborn, eh?? The man asked infuriatingly as he slapped Relena hard on her smooth, fleck-free skin.?
Relena furiously glared at him and replied. ?And why wouldn?t I yell on you, pig-headed jerk!?? ?Why you little?? Mr. Wayne shouted back as he readied his fists to give another blow on Relena?s now red and swollen cheeks but was stopped as an old man entered the room, followed by another younger man.?
?That?s enough! I don?t want her to have a bruise when she faces the court tomorrow morning.? The older man scolded.?
?Sorry, boss.? The fat guy said as he backed off a little to give his superior a space in the confined room.?
?Wayne, remove the cloth from her eyes. I want her to see me when we talk about this important matter.? He ordered as an evil grin crossed his features.?
After the cloth was removed, Relena couldn?t believe her eyes at whom she saw. There standing in front of her was Mr. Leopold Donenfeld and Mr. Howard Cortamaga. ?Mr. Donenfeld?! Why? How could you do this to me??? ?Plain and simple, I just want you to consent with my agreement. And after that, I?ll have all I ever wanted.?? ?What agreement? You?ve already ruined my credibility in front of the whole earth and colonies? congregation, isn?t that what you want? What more could you ask for??? The man sinisterly laughed and said, ?I want you permanently gone, Miss Peacecraft as in missing, vanished and disappeared. But before that, I want to make an agreement. I want you to file a guilty plea for tomorrow?s trial. And after that, of course, the court will sentence you to death. But?? Mr. Donenfeld paused as he traced the jaw line of the girl?s face. ?No need to worry I can fix that for you because whether you believe me or not, I don?t want you dead. It?ll be more fun to see your misery and for you to see my glory, isn?t it??? Mr. Cortamaga then continued what the older man had started. ?You?ll be alive but as another person. Your new identity will be Lena Darlian. Actually, I?ve already given you bonus at that. I chose the last name of your late foster father. Moreover, all the documents that you?ll be using as Lena Darlian are already prepared. This is your chance to live a normal life, don?t you want to grab this opportunity??? ? If you want me gone, then you can kill me now. But I will never concur with your conformity.?? ?Never? Oh, don?t be so hard on us, Miss Peacecraft because I?m sure you?ll not like what I?m going to do next if you?ll decline my offer.?? ?And what are you going to do this time?? Relena asked challengingly and glared at both men in defiance. ?Even if you torture me, you?ll never get me to cooperate in your malevolent plan. I won?t give up the fight just yet ?cause I know I?m innocent. And what are you trying to achieve after this, huh??? ?Really? What if I say I know the whereabouts of the five Gundam pilots? And by the way, isn?t the answer to your last question quite obvious? Princess, all I?ve ever want in this world is to have your position in the ESUN committee and then after I get a hold of Mr. Bayers trust, then I would soon be the newly appointed Prime Minister and I?ll be able to totally take over.?? ?You?re so evil!? Relena shouted while struggling to free herself from the restraints in her wrists.?
?Calm down, Miss Peacecraft. All I want is for you to live a life you have dreamt of for so many years.?? ?And what do you know about that dream, Mr. Donenfeld? As I can see, all you want is power and you?re just doing this for your own personal interest.?? ?Whatever! Now, are you going to cooperate or not??? ?No! I?ll never!?? ?Is that so? Then, I?ll be forced to ruin the future of your five friends by saying that they?re your organization?s connivers and are planning to start another war. Now, do you want that to happen????
Relena didn?t say any reply. She just carefully analyzed the options and thought it over and over again. She then finally said, ?Okay, I?ll agree with your plan but just make sure that you?ll never pull my friends into this mess. Promise me, Mr. Donenfeld. Promise me!? She said with her last ounce of strength and finally fell into a deep, restless sleep.?
?Good.? Mr. Donenfeld whispered to the air as he motioned for the other men to leave and closed the door, leaving Relena in darkness.?
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A/N: Okay, in this chapter, Relena had no other choice but to conform to Mr. Donenfeld?s agreement because she doesn?t want to put the GW guys? future at stake. She doesn?t want them to be blamed and be punished for something that they didn?t do. So, that?s the explanation of everything in this chapter. Pls. send in your comments and inquiries on issahyrp@yahoo.com