The Jasmine and The Pine

Chapter 6

By Destiny

Dr. Kegan did not even wait for a summons to his knock before he entered Javin’s office. The commander turned from the window behind his desk. He wore an irrated expression until he saw who the visitor was, then the expression turned to one of expectancy.

"Javin, she’s double-crossed us!" Kegan shut the door and waited for the explosion.

"So, she has. Well, she is more of a fool than I thought."

The doctor was so surprised at his superior’s calmness that his own anger momentarily subsided. "I should have done those inspections like you said."

"Apology accepted, doctor. It is a development I should have expected and made precautions against it. How has she succeeded?"

"She is quite ingenious! The mobile dolls have several different flaws. The main one is an odd bolt in the knee joint. Most likely the least bit of stress would cause the suit to collapse."

"The knee-joint. How noticeable is it?"

"Not very, unless you know mobile suits meticulously. Only someone who has extensive engineering training or has piloted such systems for years would be knowledgeable enough to recognize the flaw."

Javin sat in his chair deep in thought. Kegan could see a storm gathering in those dark eyes.

"Sir, do you wish me to confront her with these findings?"

"No," Javin answered slowly. "I have also discovered that Miss Barton has found spare time for other tasks besides designing mobile dolls. In my absence, my personal file on gundanium bodies was deleted. After much tedious research, I uncovered the site where the process took place--hers, our wonder engineer. Granted, she was clever enough to hide it this long."

"How much does she know about this? Can she use this information?"

"I don’t believe she has much knowledge about gundanium. The greatest danger lies in her having possession of my files. She has to be eliminated completely, though. I promised her that I could make her miserable, and I am a man of my word."

Kegan suppressed a shiver at Javin’s cruel smile that accompanied his last words. "What do you have in mind?"

"I think a waiting game is appropriate-- give her a chance to rethink her actions. Over the next few weeks we can have her little flaws mysteriously correct themselves. Surely, such a trained engineer would notice if her designs were not exactly up to par. Also, perhaps, some poison is called for at this time. Just a little; enough to make her weaken by the moment. We do not want our wonder engineer to suddenly fly the coup."

Javin’s insane laugh made the doctor cringe and hope for a quick dismissal. But the leader had other questions to ask. "Has she had help in these…these…mistakes?"

Kegan shook his head, "No, I don’t think any of the techs would be able to recognize the flaws. They are all ignorant accessories to the crime."

"What about our step-in-escort? He has been working nights, hasn’t he?"

"Well, yes, but I don’t…."

"Doctor, he was quite attentive during the banquet. You said, yourself, that he very willingly took your place. At various times tonight, I caught challenging glances from him. I think he bears closer watching."

"But, Javin, you hired him. All his papers were in order."

"Yes, I know," his fist slammed onto the desktop. "But there has always been a nagging in my mind. I’ve seen him before."

"Where? When? How could you have met this tech before?"

"I can’t remember. Possibly, he wasn’t a tech before. Maybe he isn’t really a tech at all."

"What else could he be beside…"

"He was much younger. It was at another fortress. He was with some…force that thwarted another plan of mine."

"While you were with the New Cinq Kingdom?"

"Yes! And he was…a…Gundam pilot!! He is one of the six kid pilots! I should have known it." Again Javin pounded his desk, fury radiating from him.

"What do you suggest, sir?"

"Elimination. He must be eliminated."

"Yes, I understand, but surely he isn’t that involved in her scheme," Kegan nervously shifted in his seat.

Javin fixed a look on the doctor, "My dear doctor, those two don’t hate each other as much as you think. They probably work together a lot. Therefore, this tech will warrant interrogation. I want them both! And you, as the good doctor, will arrange all the details. By the way, I have a keen feeling that Miss Barton will become better acquainted with the medical bay. We will begin our waiting game tomorrow, and presently, I will hold a grand inquisition."

Dr. Kegan closed the door behind him and leaned against it. He had been angry at his discovery of Triniti’s deception, but now he was afraid for her. That girl doesn’t deserve such treatment at Javin’s hands. I could care less what happens to the tech, but I must save her somehow!

Triniti flipped through her folder of mobile suit desighn, searching for the more recent pages. They aren’t here! Now what could I have done with them?

A gentle rap on her office door interrupted her mental search. "Come in."

"Miss Barton, how are you today?"

"Just fine, thank you, Dr. Kegan."

"May I have a word with you? Javin has decided to move up the deadline. He wants the whole mobile suit army finished in two weeks."

"What? That isn’t possible! What can he be thinking?" Triniti threw down her stack of papers and turned to face the doctor fully.

"I know it is an unexpected development, my dear, but when Mr. Lowe makes a decision it must be carried out."

"Yes, I understand," she ran a hand through her hair. "Well, doctor, I guess I must be getting busy."

After the doctor left, Triniti yanked out her file folder. Once again, she shuffled through the designs. "Where are they? Well, Mr. Lowe, I will just have to find them, won’t I?"

At lunchtime, the engineer stayed behind the rest to finish some more designs. She still had not found her misplaced papers. Triniti knew she was not that careless; her things were always so well ordered. Once again, she was interrupted by a soft knock.

"Miss Barton, I took the liberty of bringing you a lunch tray. I know this new deadline is taking up a lot of time, but you must eat."

"Dr. Kegan, you are too kind. I wasn’t even planning on eating, but I am hungry."

"Well, enjoy! And don’t worry; I’ll see that all your meals are delivered."

Kegan watched from the doorway as Triniti sampled the food on her tray. The poison was Javin’s idea, but he didn’t say how much. In those doses, she should be dead in days, and safe from his clutches.

When she saw Kegan walk into the lab with another tray, Triniti left the huddle of techs she was trying to explain the new designs to. He had followed the same routine for days now. Good Dr. Kegan, looks after the captive. She smiled weakly as she massaged her temples. Where had these headaches come from?

"Miss Barton, you have hardly touched you tray from lunch," Kegan slightly chided looking at the tray on the desk.

"I know, I know. I’ve been so busy lately that I haven’t had time to eat."

"But you will make yourself ill if you don’t eat."

Triniti shrug as she tried to ignore the pain of her throbbing head, "Besides, I can’t eat much with this headache."

"Triniti, maybe you have been working too hard. Let me give you something for the pain."

"No, no. It’s just the stress from the new deadline and the extra hours. I’m fine otherwise."

"Well, don’t hesitate to come to the infirmary if you need to. And remember, eat everything on that tray!"

"You’re getting to be as bad as someone else I know!"

Triniti waved off the concerned doctor as she sat down to go through her designs again. In addition to the missing plans, she had discovered that some of the gundams had had their flaws fixed. An early morning inspection had revealed this new development. I have to find some answers and soon. There’s no one to consult about this problem, except maybe Triton. He’s the only one in on this secret, so I’ll just have to confront him.

She took a sip of water and picked at the assorted vegetables on the tray. With this headache, just the sight of food made her sick! She needed to rest for a few minutes, that’s all. She looked around until she spotted Triton working at a suit. Walking over to him, she tried to decide what to say. Ever since the ball she had avoided him, but now they had to talk.

"Mr. Bloom, have the men finish up and quit for the day. When that’s done, please come to my office; I need to speak with you about something."

She didn’t even see his nod or the questioning look in his eyes. Triniti carried her tray back to her office. Once there, she shut the door and turned off all the lights except her small desk lamp. After choking down a bite of the ham, she stretched out on the couch and closed her eyes. Maybe the headache would go away.

Trowa’s soft knock roused Triniti from her nap. She sat up gingerly as he poked his head around the door. His eyes probed the darkened room until he spotted her sitting on the couch with her head in her hands.

"Triniti, are you okay?"

"Yes, Triton. I just had the light off because it hurt my eyes. Now come in and shut the door."

Trowa silently obeyed as Triniti flipped on the lights. She bent over her desk trying to shield her eyes from the light. He watched as she took a drink of water and pushed away the food tray.

"Maybe this new deadline is too much for you. Why don’t you just stop for the evening. I can finish whatever you need."

"No, I’m fine. I didn’t ask you here to discuss my well-being. I have a major problem, and you’re the only one who might know anything about it. Several of my latest designs are missing. Unfortunately, they are some of the more drastic flaws. You haven’t taken those to start implementing them?"

"No, the last I saw of them was when you filed them before the ball. Are you sure they are missing?"

"Yes, I don’t just misplace things."

"I know; you are very organized, but since everything has been so hectic, I thought…."

"Never mind," Triniti rubbed the back of her neck. "We have another problem: I noticed that several of the suits have had their flaws corrected. Do you know how that happened?"

"No, I hadn’t even noticed anything was amiss. The flaws have been corrected?"
"That’s what I said!" She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I’m sorry, Triton; I shouldn’t have said that. It’s just this headache. I can’t get rid of it."

"How long have you had it?"

"Ever since the deadline was moved. Don’t worry, it’s just the stress. I’ll be fine. Now about these problems. I have to fix these suits tonight. Please keep an eye out for the missing plans.

Trowa nodded, hiding a worried look, "Sure, and I’ll help you with the corrections."

"That won’t be necessary. You need to go on and get some rest."

"No more than you. I will be in the lab whenever you are ready."

"Fine. I’m in no mood to argue right now.

"I just got off the phone with Catherine again. She is so worried about Trowa."

Quatre looked up from the papers scattered on his desk as Nari walked in. He noticed her worried look and pushed away from the desk.

"What did you tell her?"

"All that I could for now. I told her that all the other pilots were fine, but none of us knew about Trowa’s friend. She’s a strange girl."

"How so?" Quatre put an arm around his wife’s shoulders and led her over to the small couch in his study. As they sat down, Nari laughed a little.

"Well, one moment she is fit to be tied that Trowa left her without any explanantion. The next minute she’s in tears because she is worried he may be in trouble. Then she’s about ready to take on the whole world in order to help him!"

"That girl must be in love with him. I’ve never seen anyone act like she does when he’s around. But then, Catherine has been the only thing Trowa ever really cared about."

"Until that friend came along," Nari moved closer to Quatre’s side. "Besides, I don’t think Catherine would suit him very well. She’s too…pushy! She doesn’t like or understand the things Trowa does."

"You women!" the blonde Arabian laughed as he kissed Nari’s cheek. "You all just love to analyze and evaluate other couples."

"Oh, stop! You sound like Wufei," Nari tried to frown, but she just laid her head on his shoulder.

Quatre gently stroked Nari’s hand. "I know. I think those two care about each other, but they aren’t right for each other. You will be interested to know that I think Trowa has found someone," he continued as Nari sat up. "Heero found out that Trowa has probably gone after a girl named Triniti Barton."

"Barton?"

"Yes, and she has been kidnapped by a renewed Javin Lowe."

"Javin! Again?" Nari shivered at the name, so Quatre pulled her closer.

"I’m afraid so. Wufei said that Trowa and she met six years ago in Marimaia’s army. Apparently, the two became really close during that time."

"But why have we never seen her? Trowa never talks about her."

Quatre nodded, "Wufei said they didn’t part on good terms. Her parting word was a slap!"

"Yet, Trowa still went after her! Does sound like Catherine will have some competition," Nari’s eyes twinkled a little, but quickly clouded over. "Quatre, if the poor girl is in Javin’s clutches…"
"Shh. I’m sure it will be okay. Trowa can look after her, and he will soon have help. Heero thinks we all should get to Javin’s headquarters and end whatever he has started."

Nari nodded as Quatre played with her red hair.

"Will you be all right, or do you want to stay here?"

"No, Quatre, the group needs you, and I want to help. Javin no longer has any power over me, thanks to you, my lord," she kissed him lightly on the lips.

"Yes, my lady," replied Quatre as he gathered her in his arms.

It was to be another long, hard day. Trinity rested her head on the back of her chair dangling her glasses from her limp hand. She closed her eyes hoping to stop the spinning sensation. Her head felt so muddled; she couldn’t seem to focus on anything. What was going on? She never got sick like this. Triniti tried to pinpoint a specific cause for her malady. Stress wouldn’t cause all of these side effects. Headaches, yes, but nausea and dizziness? No matter how often she tried to take naps, she couldn’t shake the dizzy spells. Was it something in the lab, maybe a new paint or chemical causing this?

Carefully, the engineer sat up. She shoved the lunch tray away as her stomach lurched. Kegan had been even more insistent that she eat everything. He seemed to be angry that her old tray had held so many leftovers. No explanation or excuse had placated him. Finally, Triniti promised to try to eat more. His over-concern did not help her any. Besides, she had not had any contact with Javin since the night of the ball. It certainly wasn’t because he no longer cared about her progress. Most likely, he was still angry over her behavior and was just waiting for the right punishment to formulate in his mind.

She had to draw some new designs today because that morning she found the missing ones laying among the papers on her desk. It had not taken the shocked girl long to ascertain their authenticity. She knew she was not so sick as to have over-looked them for a whole week! Since it was so apparent that someone now knew about the designs, she had to draw new ones. But that proved easier said then done because of the state her head was in.

"Miss Barton…Triniti…are you feeling well?"

"Oh, I didn’t realize anyone was still here," Triniti sat up. "Yes, Mr. Bloom, I will be just fine."

"Perhaps, you should take the afternoon off."

"No, I will be fine."

"You haven’t been fine for a week now. You are having dizzy spells now," Trowa nodded at her surprised look. "All morning you have been holding onto the walls or tables. It would probably be best if you went to bed."

"Thank you for your concern, but I believe I know what would be best for me. I have work to do, and I intend to stay and do it," she reached for the glass of water on her desk, but Trowa moved it out of her reach.

"Don’t drink that!"
"What? Now wait just a minute, I…"

"Look, I think you shouldn’t eat or drink anything that Kegan brings you," Trowa continued as he ran a hand through his hair. Triniti glared at him, but he continued, "Think about it for a moment. Ever since the deadline was moved, he’s been bringing you food, and only him. And ever since then you’ve been sick and getting sicker."

"You think Kegan is poisoning me? But he’s been so kind; he treats me like an equal."

"I know, I know. It’s either him or Javin. Yes, Kegan seems nicer, but he works for Javin. At the very least he follows orders; most likely, he is just using his personality as a front. That man is dangerous."

Triniti silently stared at her desk. "It does seem to make sense, but why? What am I to do?"

"Trin, these men never cared about you, just your skill. They used you, and now they plan to dispose of you." That was the first time he had used her nickname since he left Marimaia’s Army.

"Just like a lot of other people I know. Triton, I was not confused about their intentions. I should have seen this before; Javin promised he would make me miserable. I just didn’t believe Kegan would…."

"Will you go lie down now?"

"I have a deadline to meet or things will get worse. Besides, I can’t just disappear; they would realize what’s going on."

"Go on. I’ll take care of things here. They won’t guess what has happened."

"No, I have to see this through. I can’t just walk away!"

"Triniti, you aren’t walking away. If you can get out from under the effects of the poison, then you can think clearer, and we…you… can work out a new plan. Now, are you going to go to your room, or do I have to carry you?"

She stiffened, "Don’t you dare. I’ll scream if you touch me."

"You know that threat has no effect on me," Trowa narrowed his eyes. "What is your decision?"

"Well, Mr. Bloom, since you leave me with so many choices," she lifted her chin and pushed herself out of the chair. "I have decided to go relax--and I can do it without help."

Trowa smiled to himself as he watched the self-possessed engineer gather a few plans and make her way out of the lab. Now, he had to act quickly in order to hide her absence as he promised.