CHAPTER 8:

Goku wondered why the hell he even bothered, anyway. He looked at himself in the mirror and ran fingers through his unruly hair. Piccolo had called earlier to say that he was coming in on the 4.30pm flight…. and then there was Vegeta. Sighing, he tucked in the white long-sleeved shirt into his black casual slacks and raised an eyebrow as he watched his mate stroll into the bathroom, looking dressed up as well. An uncomfortable silence ensued for several minutes as both men tried to carry on with their toilette.

Goku reluctantly admired how good his quiet partner looked. He was dressed in similar fashion, although his shirt was dark blue. He wandered where he could possibly be heading off to. They hadn’t exactly been on speaking terms since the explosion, last night. In the past, he would have told Yamcha about everything, but now he thought about how evasive he was being and somehow he knew that Yamcha was hiding something from him, as well. Unable to stand the tension any longer, he blurted out,

“You look good.”

Yamcha raised an eyebrow, unable to resist the light shade of pink that crossed his cheeks. “Thanks.” He muttered, running the comb through his hair.

“So…where are you going?” Goku asked, putting on some cologne.

“Oh…you know…taking a walk around the town…that sort of a thing. How about you?”

“Oh…the same thing. Taking in the sights and sounds of Paris.”

Both men laughing uneasily, as they both realized how lame their excuses sounded.

“Don’t forget, Piccolo comes in today at…” Goku began.

“I know when he comes in. I will be there.” Yamcha replied a bit too sharply.

Both men stared at each other, unspoken emotions hanging thick in the air. Yamcha wanted to blurt out everything, but seeing the cold look that came into Goku’s face, he, too, froze up and turned away to shrug into his jacket, tucking his gun within the folds of clothing.

“I will meet you here at, say four, is that okay?” he asked.

“Sure.”

“Good. See you.” Waving slightly, he walked out of the room and shut the door quietly behind him.

Goku waited for about thirty minutes, before he shrugged into his own jacket and then he, too, headed towards the Hotel.

Trunks and 17 stared with expressionless faces at the words that came out of the man’s mouth across from them. This was the same man that had attacked them twice, looked eerily like their boss and was now telling them that he had all the gold they had come to this city for. And to make matters worse, this Vegeta guy was telling them that he wanted their services.

“I don’t get it. What makes you think we would want to work for you? Your father…if he really is your father…pays us very well and I don’t trust you.” 17 finally spoke up in icy tones.

Vegeta leaned forward and stared earnestly into the younger men’s faces. “We both know what an asshole your boss is. Look at you two. All this time, you have been working for a guy who doesn’t really give a shit about you. He pays you chicken feed compared to what Goku and Yamcha gets and when did you two have a really successful mission? I am offering you a chance to become a part of my organization. You saw how easy it was for me to get the gold bars, think of how easy it would be for you two. Your jobs will be more exciting and rewarding than it has ever been and to prove it to you….I have a little something for both of you.”

Reaching down for his briefcase, smiling slightly as he noticed the men reach for their weapons automatically, he placed it on the table. Grinning, Vegeta spoke steadily, watching the men’s reactions carefully,

“In this briefcase, gentlemen, is the lump sum of ten million dollars, which will be given to you….as soon as you agree to join my team.” With a flourish, he opened up the briefcase and sniggered at the way their jaws dropped in astonishment. Trunks seemed so mesmerized, his hands reached out for the money, only to feel the snap of the locks, as Vegeta slammed it shut.

“As I said, it will be all yours, if you say 'yes'.” Leaning back casually against the chair, he sipped his martini and waited patiently for the answer that he knew was coming. He watched in amusement as the men talked feverishly between themselves. Looking at his watch, he snorted with impatience as he realized that Goku and Yamcha would probably be at the hotel, by now. ~ Let’s hope they don’t rip each other’s eyes out. ~

“Well, gentlemen, what will it be? I am a very busy man.”

“Alright, Vegeta” 17 answered coolly, “We will work for you. But Bejita would be a problem, he doesn’t take too kindly to people ditching him, you know.”

Vegeta waved his hands in dismissal, “Don’t worry about him. I will handle my father in due time.”

“What about Radditz?” Trunks asked.

“It seems that Radditz is certainly very loyal to Bejita and he, too, could cause a problem, but not to worry, I am sure he will be taken care of.”

17 and Trunks shivered involuntarily at the coldness of the last sentence. They watched as their new boss stretched out his hands to seal the deal. Hands were shaken and Vegeta grinned in satisfaction.

“You will get your first instructions from one of my employees. As of right now, I want you two to leave the city. A taxi is waiting to pick you up. You will go to your hotel room and pack up your things. You are to leave on the 8.40 flight and once you arrive, you will be given further instructions. Your money will be placed in a safe place, because if you both decide to do anything funny…” smiling grimly, “You will be killed. Good day, gentlemen.”

And saluting slightly, the two men watched as Vegeta strode out into the busy streets. Wandering what they had gotten themselves into, they walked out to the waiting taxi.

Radditz paced in agitation around the small room. They were supposed to meet Bejita here, but somehow Trunks and 17 had seemed to vanish into thin air. He had gone to check up on them at their hotel and had been shocked when he had discovered that they had left. No sign. No warning. Nothing. Just gone. Running weary hands through his hair, he wondered how he was going to explain to his boss about the situation. It wasn’t going to be pretty.

“Hello, Radditz.” Came the deep voice of his employer.

He spun around sharply, and stared at the entourage with a wan smile. Bejita had come into the room, along with Zarbon and Dodoria, two of his most trusted henchmen. Radditz began sweating, as he looked into the dead, calm expression on Bejita’s face.

“H..Hello, boss.” He stammered, licking suddenly dry lips.

“Hmmm….”Bejita began, walking towards the windows and staring out at the afternoon Paris skyline. Sinking hands into his pockets, he rocked back on his heels and asked steadily, “Where are the others?”

Radditz opened and shut his mouth like a fish for several moments, glancing with fearful eyes at the blank looks on Zarbon and Dodoria’s faces, before mustering up the courage to answer. “Umm….there aren’t here…at this time….boss.”

“Someone told me that they might have left the country, Radditz. Were you aware of that?” Bejita asked coldly, still staring out the window.

~ Fuck! ~ “Umm…no..no…sir…I was…not….aware…”

“Tell me, Radditz. Are you ever aware of anything around you?! At all?! Can you for one time do something right without botching it?! What the fuck am I paying you for?!” Bejita’s voice rose in anger as he spun around to face the now trembling man. “You make me sick! Zarbon! Dodoria! Finish him off!” he finished angrily, storming out of the room.

“Please, Bejita-sama! Forgive me…”Radditz began begging, as the two men approached him. His eyes widened in horror but in a desperate move, he lunged to attack Dodoria, knocking the man off his feet in surprise. Getting a grip on his gun, he swung around quickly and shot the fat man between his eyes, watching with slight satisfaction as the body hit the floor in a thud.

BANG!! It took him several minutes before he realized that he, too, had been shot. Staggering a bit, he watched in fascination as his blood seeped out of his chest. Raising his head to look at his former partner, he tried to open his mouth to call out his name, when the second bullet went straight into his forehead, sending him into blissful darkness.

Goku strolled along the boulevards, breathing in the refreshing scent of the flower stands that stood nearby. Smiling softly, he waved to a group of French schoolgirls, who in turn giggled and blushed as they stared at the handsome stranger.

He figured he would get to the hotel in about twenty minutes, so there really wasn’t any rush. He walked across the pedestrian bridge, stopping to lean over the wall, as he stared at the sparkling waters that were filled with small boats drifting away with lovers and families enjoying the crisp mid-afternoon air. ~ Hn. Love. ~ It was a funny thing really. Yamcha had asked him several times, if he loved him and he had always been unable to answer, either skipping around the question or just silencing the man with his lips. He shut his eyes and felt a dull ache in his chest. ~ Maybe…maybe…I do love him. Kami! I am so screwed. ~ As his mind rushed back to the memories of the kiss he had shared with Vegeta in the alleyway. Cursing himself for even thinking about it, he began heading towards the hotel.

As he approached the building, he saw a familiar figure walking up to the very same place. ~ What the…? ~

“Yamcha?” He asked in surprise, shock and dull anger, noticing the same expression on the other man’s face. “What are you doing here?!”

For a moment Yamcha thought of ignoring him and then he too felt his own anger flare up. Folding his arms and looking at Goku blankly, he replied in icy tones, “I should be asking you that, shouldn’t I, koi?”

“Why you lousy son-of-a-….” Goku began menacingly, stalking up to the other man.

“Hello, gentlemen.” Came the amused drawl, as Vegeta walked up to the scowling men with a smile on his face.

Both men spun around at the same time, drinking in the sight of their current predicament. Goku felt his skin heat up, as Vegeta seemed to stare at him with blatant lust in his eyes. Twin jet black eyes seemed to be locked in a war of desire which neither was willingly to accept defeat. Finally managing to tear his eyes away from Vegeta’s, he turned quickly to glance at Yamcha and saw that his partner was red-faced in apparent fury.

Yamcha had seen the exchange between the two men. Hell! The sexual tension was so thick; you could have sliced it with a knife. Gritting his teeth, he spat out,

“Since we all seem to know each other, why don’t we get this little show started, ne Vegeta?”

Vegeta smirked in silent victory, and turning towards Yamcha, he replied, “Why not?”As he began leading the two soon-to-be ex-partners to his pent house suite.