Edge of the Chase [Ch2. PG13]

[RelenaFanel]

Title: Edge of the Chase
Author: Relena Fanel
Chapter: 2
Rating: PG13
Summary:
Heero was sitting at the bar, swirling a glass of clear liquid between his long fingers. She was convinced he was staring back at her, his emotions concealed behind shaggy bangs and cold, distant eyes.
Previous chapters:---Chapter 1 ---

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Relena sipped her drink as she lounged against the bar, surveying the room with perceivable disinterest. Heero had left her in an awkward position, as she had arrived with a date and leaving without one would be obvious and rise questions. The glass in her hand was filled with another nonalcoholic drink, a virgin baybreeze this time, and when she looked at the room through the liquid and ice, everything was a cranberry pink. Relena, however, could see through the myth of the rose coloured glasses and discern the dangers to her person throughout the ballroom. As far as she could tell, her only backup was a playboy billionaire who might or might not blow his cover in her defense and his posse of slightly intoxicated sisters. When she had first entered the room hours ago, she was able to count a total of three guards hired by the host secretly keeping watch over the room. She didn?t know how Heero was able to sneak up that flight of stairs without any of them seeing him, but she assumed that something happened, likely a planned distraction, elsewhere to draw their attention.

Now, there were three covering the main entrance alone. She could spot another two men, looking stoic and out of place in their tuxedos watching the balcony doors carefully. She knew that the hallway to the washroom was being watched, as was the main staircase, the kitchen entrance and any other perceivable way in and out of the room. What really worried her were the ones she couldn?t see, who were good enough to blend in so that her mostly untrained eye couldn?t pick them out from the guests. They would be the ones like Heero, who could be watching you from two feet away and you would never notice. Relena was familiar with the thoroughness of her host, and knew for a fact that he wouldn?t just rely on obvious guards. Already, he had risked insulting his guests by upping the security, and a murmur was going through the crowd as people noticed. The disc must be worth far more than she realized, if Wattmeter was willing to be shunned by society for the brief chance of retrieving it.

The feeling of the tape binding the sharp plastic beneath her breast was suddenly obvious to her nerves and she had to fight the urge to rub it to make sure it wasn?t showing through her fitted gown. Her confidence that she could get out those doors undetected suddenly shattered, causing her to hide behind the drink in her hand. It was slowly becoming apparent that it wasn?t just her job and reputation on the line here, but also her life. She couldn?t understand how Heero could put her into a situation like this, it was what confused her the most.

She scowled at her drink, forgetting for a second that she was being watched at all times.

?Such a beautiful face shouldn?t look so unhappy,? Chad remarked as he slid into the seat next to her. Relena had to school her features into a congenial fa?ade ? it was far easier than she liked to admit, as it was an effort she had to make every day. When had she become so discontented with her life?

?It?s the drink,? she replied pleasantly. ?It isn?t getting me drunk enough, by far.?

?I know the feeling. These social events can be so tedious, can?t they.?

Relena wished that was her only problem. ?It isn?t only that,? she confided. ?I made a fool of myself in front of all these people, and you know how vicious they can get. My shrink insisted it would make me feel better, but it makes me want to crawl into a hole and die.?

?I enjoyed it, personally. It isn?t every day you have beautiful princesses declaring their love for you.?

Relena glared at him over her glass. Calling him obtuse was being kind. Didn?t he realize that once tonight was over, rumours of their engagement would be circling through less reputable magazines as it was. Of course, here she was looking a gift horse in the mouth. ?Would you care to dance with me, Chad??

?Of course!? He stood at attention, lieutenant to her general, and offered his hand. Relena gracefully took it, standing up in a swirl of silk and dignity. She left the baybreeze at the bar, along with what she hoped to be her fears.

Chad stood awkwardly on the dance floor, his limbs not exuding the careless ease of someone comfortable with what they were doing. His moves were mechanical, and he didn?t deviate from the tri-step of the waltz as seen depicted in books. When Relena stepped backwards, he extended a little too much force on her upper limbs, knocking her off kilter. As they circle-triangulated around the ballroom, she was paying more attention to keeping her footing than she was the pleased smiles of the matriarchs as she waltzed by.

By the end of the dance, she was gritting her teeth and promising herself that she?d never make personal public speeches again. She was also going to track down Heero and shove the disc up his rectum. See how he liked that! Relena closed her eyes on the final turn, starting to feel nauseated through a combination of the dancing and what she was going to have to do next. It tore her at her heart and made her stomach heave to think she was going to have to sacrifice all her morals and upstanding virtue just because of this stupid situation. She knew what everyone would say, as she couldn?t stress enough how vicious the gossip in the elite circle of politicians could be. Putting on her best false smile, she looked him right in the eye and turned her head coquettishly. ?Would you take me home??

His eyes widened, incorrectly assuming the same thing every guy does with a sentence like that. ?Are you serious?? he asked, amazed. He looked left and right, either to see if anyone had heard her to validate that his fantasy was actually real or to try to find a buddy to brag to before he left. ?Wow, they sure are wrong about you.?

Relena clenched, her fingernails going into the palm of her hand and her back going up. How. Dare. He. Eugh, if she hadn?t disliked the guy already, she would hate him now. Outwards, she smiled again and slipped her hand through his arm, directing him towards the door. Sometimes she thought she should give up politics and go into acting. Nothing would change, certainly, except that the outcome wouldn?t be a matter of life, death, war, peace, or democracy. The phony smile pasted on her face stayed there as she nodded her farewells to the host and hostess and ignored the hushed words of gossip as they raised around her like a tidal-wave. She was tired of the glitterati.

Chad got her through the door with nothing more than a brief consideration from the guard. Relena felt a sense of relief run through her. Not only had she successfully completed her assignment, but now she could get rid of the pompous fool at her side. She turned to him, ready to dole out a well aimed, but cleverly disguised insult as well as her good-nights.

?I think you?re beautiful,? he told her.

Well, that took the wind out of her sails for a moment. No girl could possibly kick someone down a second after they paid a wonderful compliment. It was best to wait two or three. ?Well, I think you?re??

?Miss Relena, a word.? Wattmeter interrupted her, which was probably for the best, she mused, turning to see him approaching with three of his muscle-men guards flanking behind. Oh oh, her brain said. Run. For a split instant her eyes widened in fear and she felt a cold sweat break out along her forehead. There wasn?t anything she could do about her initial physical reaction, but she quickly pulled herself together to show that Emmy-winning calm exterior.

?Oh, Wattmeter. I?m glad you stopped me. I wanted to thank you for your hospitality and tell you that the party was divine as always.? She grinned charmingly, swaying sideways and blinking wildly as she stumbled over her heels. ?Whoops,? she said, glancing at the ground for something she could have tripped over, but finding nothing of course.

?You seem to be a bit tipsy.? He said flatly.

?Noooooo.? Relena told him. ?My drinks were all non-alcoholic.?

?I?ll just be leaving,? Chad muttered, sidling off like someone experiencing great guilt or discomfort. Neither Wattmeter nor Relena paid him much attention.

?Where is it, princess??

?You know I?ve renounced my right to carry that title.? Relena said sharply.

?Who said I was using it in honorific terms? I want that disc.?

?What disc?? she asked, feeling the plastic burn into her skin, an albatross on fire, and she was sure the whole world could see the beacon of its light.

?The one you stole from me!? Wattmeter?s rage drew the attention of a group of people leaving the party, and they all turned to stare at the spectacle of the innocuous pacifist being accused of theft by one of the politicians openly against her policies. For some of them, his accusation was impossible and foolish, but others could see the possibilities. If someone had stolen from Wattmeter, the one it would best serve would be the woman who always seemed beyond reproach.

?Don?t be foolish,? Relena replied harshly. It was no longer just a battle of wills and lies between herself and a rival, but now there was a crowd of people who would be judging the two of them and drawing their own conclusions. It hardly mattered what the outcome was now, she could see her political and personal future in ruins after tonight. The girl who was slightly amused by the intrigue of the evening who was present earlier was now far gone, and she cursed the day she had ever met Heero Yuy. ?You know I didn?t steal anything.?

?Do I?? His eyebrow rose and lips quirked in a sneer that was anything but amused. ?Let me tell you what I do know. I know you set off alarms when you walked through the doors, so you have a piece of advanced nano technology somewhere on your body, and it isn?t a cell phone. I also know you have the most to gain with the information on that disc and I want it back.?

?I wonder,? Relena mused, ?what could possibly be on that disc that you would risk confronting me for. If I think on it, it makes me curious to consider that I would go to such great lengths to obtain it.? Her threat was silent, almost inconceivably so. Try me, she was daring. If you make a scene, I?ll tell the world what it is you are trying to hide. It didn?t matter that she didn?t know what it was yet. The truth was there were a few accurate guesses she could make, and a good number of on-going investigations she was privy to that he was likely included in.

?That isn?t the point. My scanners don?t lie, Miss Peacecraft.? He deflected, bring the focus back on her. The ball of accusations was being lobbed across the court, and one of these times one of them was going to miss the hit. Relena wasn?t confident it would be her who walked away from this with dignity intact, but she did know that it was necessary that she did. She couldn?t possibly explain away the disc on her body, and maybe it would have been wiser to stick it in her purse. In that case, she could use deniability and just claim that someone had planted it, because there was no easier place to secretly place something on a woman without her knowledge.

Relena shrugged, not trying to argue that the sensitive equipment was wrong. ?Take it up with my security detail. I?m not quite sure of the technology involved, but I did give them permission this week to try out a new tracking system they have been working on.? With that cleverly disguised lie, she turned her back on Wattmeter, the armed guards at his back, and the growing crowd of peers in order to walk towards her limousine. Gone was the socialite pretending to be drunk, a myth to placate those around her into acquiesce, just as the woman-child who adopted her life to fit in with a perceived standard created by parents long since dead had disappeared to reveal the woman beneath. She was the girl who went for revenge with a gun pressed against the side of her leg, the power of it cold and exhilarating but not enough to distract her from reality.

She was never merely what people saw on the outside.

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?RelenaFanel.November11.2006

Review, please.

[Morrighan]

Eugh, men. -.-

I'm still rooting for Relena... I hope she gets Heero good...

Can't wait to see more!!

[HiFreak]

Agree with Morrigan, Heero is in BIG trouble.
Please update soon.

[PeaceWing]

That disk had better been worth it because Relena is getting VERY angry! I don't know what Heero's going to do make up for this. This is getting really interesting, I can't wait until chapter 3.

[Nihal]

we have a peculiar word in italian that would be perfect to describe Heero at the moment but I won't report it for the sake of censorship...
what an insensitive idiot!
wonderful chap anyway, keep going! ^_^

[takisha16]

sooooooo....she got away??????
I loved her acting skills!!
She seriously knows how to keep her cool under loads of pressure!
I'm not too mad at Heero...I know he HAS to make it up to
her...somehow....
Yay for another update!

[amulak]

I agree with PeaceWing, that disk had better have some pretty good stuff on it. Poor Relena, that would be so terrifying and humiliating. I bet that she's going to do some good Heero smiting when she finds him ^^
I'm excited for the next chapter!!