Fanfiction: I Took A Ride To Meet An Enemy - Part Four

[safaiagemwriting]

I Took A Ride To Meet An Enemy

Part Four

It took a few hours to make their way to one of the many safe houses they had located around the world and by then Arthur was ready to pass out. It was not so much from blood loss, though he guessed that the wound in his torso was not helping, but also that he was just exhausted. There was a lot going on right now and he was having trouble getting all of it sorted in his head. They needed to get out of the country as soon as possible and go into hiding. Someone wanted them dead and they were willing to take shots at civilians. Whoever they had angered was not taking any chances and neither was he.

Eames moved swiftly toward their first aid station as soon as they opened the door to the tiny studio apartment.

“Let me see your ribs,” Eames said. They both sat down on the small bed in a corner. Arthur pealed off his jacket and shirt. The blood made it stick and he tried very hard to hide the wince of pain but he was sure Eames noticed it. Without needing to be told he lay down with the wound facing the other man and put his arm above his head allowing the forger to get to work.

“We need to get out of the country,” Arthur said as he felt the needle slide into his skin.

“Sooner rather than later. I don’t really want to die,” Eames replied as he worked.

“I don’t either,” he said. “Do we have any passports that are clear?”

“Yes, I have a few that’ll get us out of America.” Eames tied off the stitches and sat up straight. Eames did not wince as Arthur checked over his nose and decided that it was not broken though it had been a close call. Arthur leaned over and put pressure on Eames’ ribs; there was no grinding which meant that they were not broken but Eames still winced in pain. “Fuck that hurts.”

“I don’t think it’s meant to feel good,” Arthur replied a bit too smugly as he applied tape to keep it in place. “We probably both have concussions.”

“Guess that means no sleep for now,” Eames replied. “Shall we get ready to high tail it out of here?”

“Always a good time.” Arthur flashed a smile which the other man returned and they both went off in different directions in the apartment. Arthur pulled out his laptop and looked for flights that were taking off in the next few hours. He was running on fumes and so was Eames but there was no way they would get any sleep until it was safe. Eames was checking over their passports for any errors when Arthur’s phone went off. They both stopped and looked at each other.

“Were you expecting anyone to call?”

“No, I put out notice that we were going on vacation and were not going to be available for work,” Arthur replied as he picked up his phone. The name on the screen read Saito Hiroshi and for the first time in his life Arthur froze up completely. Eames must have noticed because he was next to him in seconds, his eyes wide.

“The timing is way too convenient,” Eames said.

“And it will look obvious that we know that if we don’t answer,” Arthur replied as he answered the phone. “Arthur here.”

“Mr. Arthur, this is Saito Hiroshi,” Saito said casually.

“Mr. Saito, what can I do for you today?” he asked.

“I was wondering if you could fly out to Tokyo for a dinner meeting. I have some work I’d like you to do and it’s not something I’d like to discuss over the phone.” Eames was pressed against his body so he could listen and he pulled away his eyes wide.

“It’s very last minute for me to fly out to Japan,” Arthur said carefully. Eames mouthed ‘no’ very blatantly.

“I’d pay for the flight. of course. I do own an airline after all. Is that something holding you up?” Saito asked. His phone beeped, signaling another call, and he looked up to see Eames calling his phone.

“Mr. Saito, I’m afraid I have an urgent call I need to take quickly, may I place you on hold?” Arthur asked.

“Yes, yes, do what you need to.” Arthur placed Saito on hold and looked up at Eames.

“You can’t go,” Eames said sternly. “For all we know he’s the one that’s trying to kill us and you want to go have sushi?”

“That was a little racist, Eames, and who said anything about me considering it?” Arthur asked.

“I know you,” Eames said, which was really answer enough because he was considering it.

“If we say ‘no’ he’ll know we’re onto him. We need to find out one way or another and Saito isn’t someone to leave a paper trail I could track. I need to go,” Arthur replied. Eames stared at him, eyes narrow, and crossed his arms across his chest.

“I’m going,” he said. Arthur opened his mouth to disagree but Eames held up a hand. “You are not going alone. Period. This one missed too, remember? Something else is going on here and there is no way I’m letting you go alone,” The truth was it was a good idea to have Eames with him for backup if things went wrong. Arthur nodded and switched the phone back to Saito.

“Sorry about that, Mr. Saito, but business called,” Arthur said.

“That’s fine, can I expect you out here for dinner? Where are you currently and is Mr. Eames with you as well.? Does he need a ticket?” Saito asked. Arthur briefly considered saying that they were not together but there was also a chance that they could be split up. With assassins gunning for them he felt much more secure as a duo than solo.

“We’re in Boston and another ticket would be great.”

“Excellent. I will email you the boarding passes and when you get here we’ll discuss dinner. Have a good night, Mr. Arthur.” Saito hung up and Arthur stood in the apartment with his phone in hand, Eames watching him closely.

“We need to get ready,” Arthur said.

---

Saito was unsurprisingly efficient at getting them plane tickets to Japan on short notice. Fortunately they had enough time to travel the four hours or so to get from New York to Boston. The drive plus checking into the airport left them both enough time to get to the terminal without any problems. The problem, however, was how many people kept giving them looks because of their injuries. His nose had swollen into two black eyes and Arthur’s fat lip was impressive (if a little distracting). They made small talk and to anyone walking by it would have sounded like they had been jumped by someone and had barely made it out alive. A few people walked by and seemed interested. Eames told them the story and made sure it was as extravagant as possible. The passerby either laughed or dismissed him as a comedian .

The flight was a total of eighteen hours, with a connection in California, and sleeping seemed like the best idea. They were in first class with businessmen who did not seem to care that they were there. Eames could not settle down, however, because they were on the airline that Saito owned. If Saito was trying to kill them, he was someone who had no problem shooting teenage girls and Eames Eames would not have been surprised if Saito was willing to crash the entire plane despite the fact that both of the assassins had missed their targers.

“We’re not both going to dinner,” Arthur said as they waited for their plane in California. The other man had slept on and off for the flight. Eames had as well, but it was not nearly enough rest.

“I need to be your back up,” he replied. “I’ve got your back, Arthur.”

“I know you do.” The assurance was not needed but it still made him smile a little to know how much Arthur trusted him. “I’m not sure if I can find a way for you to listen in.”

“I’d probably manipulate him better, you know,” Eames pointed out.

“You’re a liar and a thief--”

“--thank you for the lovely compliment--”

“--he’ll be much more likely to trust me.” Arthur glared at Eames who just flashed his best smile. “Do we have contacts?” This was Arthur’s way of asking if they knew anyone who could sell them firearms.

“Yes, and our files are safe,” which was code for ‘we got the PASIV on the plane and we’re good to go.’ Arthur nodded, closed his eyes and appeared to be deep in thought. Eames did not bother him because he knew the look of the man forming a plan. Instead Eames busied himself with trying to come up with the best way to help Arthur manipulate Saito into telling them exactly what was going on.

They landed, retrieved the PASIV, checked into a hotel and no one took a shot at them so Eames considered this a victory for now. They both sat away from the windows and out of sight. They had a meeting with an arms dealer in thirty minutes and now it was just a matter of waiting for Saito to invite Arthur to dinner. It was still the afternoon and Eames was beginning to feel the exhaustion straight down to his bones. There was a point that all dreamers reached where they needed sleep, any kind of sleep, and they were fast approaching this mark.

“After we get the guns we need to take naps,” Eames said. Arthur looked up at him, his dark eyes bloodshot with dark lines underneath them. He looked just as tired as Eames felt.

“We’ll take shifts,” Arthur replied. They sat in silence, both collecting their thoughts, until they made their way through the busy streets of the city. Eames could feel eyes on them but they only lingered for so long. They’re just looking at the injuries, he thought more or less to reassure himself.

Fortunately, the arms dealer was in a good mood and gave them a decent discount. He looked tempted to ask about the black eyes and split lips but held his tongue . When they finally arrived back at the hotel they were armed well enough that Eames could feel a little of the tension fading from his shoulders.

“Go to sleep,” he told Arthur. The other man stared, looked like he was about to argue, but nodded. Eames knew that Arthur must be very tired because he just collapsed onto the bed suit and all. The only thing he managed to do was kick off his shoes and was fast asleep in moments. That left Eames with his thoughts and weapons to clean. He tried not to focus on the fact that they were possibly being hunted by one of the most powerful men in the world. He tried not to focus on the fact that a sniper could kill one or both of them when they walked out the door. He tried not to focus on the fact that Arthur could walk into a restaurant and get shot point blank. Eames tried not to think about things because they made his gut twist into tight knots. Instead he focused on cleaning the guns and Arthur’s even breathing.

---

The three hours of sleep he got were some of the best of Arthur’s life and he felt so much better when Eames woke him up. He slowly opened his eyes and the other man came into focus. They were almost nose to nose, close enough to touch, but Arthur kept his hands to himself. Instead he sat up and stretched.

“Feel better?” Eames asked sitting down next to him on the bed.

“You have no idea,” Arthur replied. It was mid afternoon now and he hoped that he could stall Saito until the evening so Eames could get some sleep. “Well, off to bed with you,” he said with a flick of the wrist.

“You’re a twat,” Eames said leaning in to kiss him briefly.

“Thank you for the lovely compliment,” Arthur quoted Eames’ previous statement back at him.

“I meant every word,” Eames replied and crawled onto the bed. Arthur stood up and noticed that every gun was cleaned and ready to go. He was about to ask about it when he realized Eames was already asleep. Instead he set his phone to vibrate and opened his laptop. When they had arrived in the city Arthur had set up a dummy check in at another hotel across town. They had stopped by, checked in and left while picking up the guns. If nothing else it made him feel a little better to have a decoy location. He busied himself with looking over more escape routes through the city . Arthur hoped they wouldn’t but, he also did not have very high hopes.

Two hours into Eames’ nap, Arthur’s phone rang. He picked it up, saw Saito’s name and promptly took the call in the bathroom.

“Arthur here,” he said.

“Ah, Mr. Arthur, how was your flight?” Saito asked.

“Long but dull.”

“The Pacific is quite large and very boring,” the businessmen said chuckling. “Are you and Mr. Eames ready to meet me for dinner?”

“Eames has some business to attend to here so it’ll just be me,” Arthur replied.

“Ah, well, that’s fine. How does two hours from now sound for dinner?”

“Sounds perfect.” Saito gave Arthur directions to a restaurant and hung up moments later. Without wasting a second Arthur sat down at his computer and looked up the building plus the surrounding area. By the time he needed to wake Eames up so they could change Arthur knew the area better than the locals. Arthur walked over and gently shook Eames awake. Eames stirred and opened his eyes.

“What’s the plan?” he asked sleepily.

“Shower, change and I’ll show you the location,” Arthur replied. “And we’re not sharing a shower, Eames. We’re not going to be late.”

“You ruin all of my fun,” Eames replied smiling. He stood up and vanished into the bathroom. When he emerged, Arthur took his place standing under the hot spray longer than he needed to. It felt good to shower, get into fresh clothes. and they both put new bandages on their wounds. His lip was still split and Eames’ black eyes looked pretty terrible but there was nothing they could do about it.

When Arthur emerged from the shower Eames was already looking at the map and they spent time going over it. Eames was to wait outside armed and ready to back Arthur up. Unfortunately the area was densely populated and a car would not be any use to them for several blocks. The rental car was to be there waiting with all of their things inside.

“We’re going to be late if we wait any longer,” Eames said checking his phone. Arthur watched Eames carefully, realizing he could very well be walking into a trap, and one of them could die. It made his chest hurt just thinking about it. Arthur into Eames’ space and kissed him hard. Eames returned the kiss just as furiously, pulling them close together, and Arthur briefly wondered if his lip was going to split open again. They pulled away at the same time and stared. “I’ve got your back, Arthur.”

“You always do,” he replied . They packed their things, checked out of the hotel and drove the rental car to their destination. Eames lingered behind and Arthur made his way through the crowds to the restaurant. It was busy, which he considered a good thing, but that had not stopped an assassin in New York. Saito was already there and a hostess escorted Arthur to a booth in the corner. Arthur did not like the location; it was too far away from any exits, but it was not like he could ask Saito to move. The businessman looked up as Arthur approached and smiled.

“Arthur, good to see you, please have a seat,” he said. “I have a bottle of warm sake, would you like a glass?”

“I’ll pass, thank you,” Arthur replied. He did not see anyone watching him but that did not mean that there was no one nearby. Eames was just outside, out of sight, blending in the way only a thief and forger could. “How is business?”

“Very good, thank you for asking, but we’re not here to talk about my actual business, now are we?” Saito smiled but it seemed forced.

“What are you looking for?” Arthur asked.

“We’ll get to that in a moment.” Saito waved him off and gestured to a waiter who brought over a large plate. Saito took a piece off of food and added it to a smaller plate but Arthur could not ease the feeling in his gut that eating the food would be a bad idea. “How is Mr. Cobb? Have you heard from him recently?”

“Not in a little while, but last I heard he was doing well,” Arthur easily lied.

“Excellent to hear. After the incident with IDCA and that agent’s investigation I can understand him being uneasy.” Saito took a sip of sake and Arthur tilted his head.

“I never said he was uneasy,” he replied. “But he shouldn’t be because it’s been dealt with. That investigation was closed when Agent Burman left the association.” Saito looked up from his food and their eyes met across the table.

“I’m glad to hear that,” Saito said. He set down his chopsticks. “One could understand how it would make someone nervous though.”

“Mr. Saito, why did you invite me out here?” Arthur asked, tired of beating around the bush. The longer he took in here the higher their chances that Eames would be spotted.

“The investigation with IDCA had made me nervous and I don’t like feeling nervous,” Saito replied. “Mr. Arthur, you’re not a stupid man, and I think you know what is going on here. I have loose ends to tie up and these are not loose ends someone like yourself can take care of. Since they are beyond your abilities I’ve hired others to take care of it for me. I’m sure someone who values security as much as yourself can understand.”

“I’m afraid I can’t,” Arthur replied briskly. “The IDCA incident was a fluke because Cobol did not kill Nash like we expected them to. That being said, however, I’m not sure you entirely realize what doors you’re opening, Mr. Saito.”

The older man smiled, obviously amused, and picked up his glass to take another drink.

“I’ve seen you in action, Arthur; I know exactly what door I’m opening.”

“Cobb risked a lot to pull you out of limbo and this is how you repay him?” Arthur asked.

“Have you ever been to limbo, Mr. Arthur? No, I don’t think you have, because you still carry the air of a young man; a young man that has been and done terrible things but a young man nevertheless. I am not a young man anymore, I’ve lived a full life, and I think I’m going to make things more interesting the second time around. You are correct, I do owe Mr. Cobb my life, and that is why the first attempt missed,” Saito explained.

“And the incident in New York?”

“I had to get your attention somehow.” Saito picked up his drink and took a sip. “There won’t be anymore mishaps like that now. I have your attention and you know what I intend to do.”

“This isn’t a dream. Those weren’t projections that were killed in that restaurant but real people. I won’t let you hurt anyone else.” Arthur clenched his fists and tried to keep his anger under control.

“And I admire that determination even if it is futile.” Saito glanced off to the side and Arthur could see two men three tables over glance their way. “I’m a gentlemen, though, and I do enjoy some sport so I’m giving you a thirty second head start. It is also the honorable thing to do considering the circumstances.”

Arthur stared, unable to believe that someone actually thought that way in the real world, and stood.

“You have no idea whom you’re dealing with” he warned but Saito merely smiled, tapping his ridiculously expensive watch like he was starring in a summer blockbuster.

“Twenty seconds.”

Arthur wasted no more time with this facade and ran for the exit, shoving people aside as he did. The men from the other table were standing , clearing about to give chase. He was out the door in minutes and barely gave Eames time to react as they bolted through the streets. A shot rang out and the people around them scattered.

“How many?” Eames asked as they ducked around a corner.

“Two, minimum, but there could be more,” Arthur replied. “They’re going to shoot someone that isn’t us. I can’t let that happen.” Eames glanced at him and nodded. They turned a final corner and flanked both sides of the alley. The men from the restaurant turned the corner but as soon as Arthur and Eames started firing, they ducked out of sight. Bullets shattered the brick nearby as Arthur turned and fired another shot. These men were obviously professionals . Another shot shattered the brick and Arthur closed his eyes, focusing. He remembered the military and he thought of dreams, he thought of how he could slow this down if he wanted to, and it was surreal because it almost felt like it did. I need to check my totem, Arthur thought, and he looked at Eames. Their eyes met and they did not need to shout at each other, they never had, and they both turned at the same time, firing one shot each.

The bullets struck home and the two men fell to the ground. People were still screaming but there was no more gunfire. Arthur clicked the safety on his pistol , shoved it into the holster in his jacket and looked at Eames. Eames nodded and they took off jogging toward the car.

“Let’s go pick up a pint sized architect from Paris,” Eames said. In any other situation it would have been an amusing statement but it had weight behind it; Saito was gunning for all of them and there was no time.

---

Eames wasn’t sure how Arthur managed to get them out of Japan but it took four different planes until they finally touch down in Paris. By then he barely felt good enough to walk let alone drive. They took a cab to a small hotel near the university. They had not contacted Ariadne yet because it did not seem safe to tell her what was going on over the phone. Instead they were going to go straight to her between classes. If she suspected anything with Miles being gone she had not mentioned it to anyone and they had both told her to contact them if anything should happen.

The hotel door opened easily and Eames tossed his bag to the side. They had a large one bedroom with bright windows that he resented the hell out of because he was so tired. He turned when he heard the door shut as Arthur set his things down too. Arthur looked so tired to the point that it almost hurt to look at him. They needed sleep or they were going to be worthless

He walked forward, taking Arthur by the jacket. The other man watched him carefully and let Eames pull him into the room. Neither of them said a word . They and the people they care about are in danger, and that was terrifying in a way that the prospect of limbo had never been. Eames pressed their foreheads together and they stood there for a long time. It could have been seconds, minutes, hours, Eames was never sure when it came to Arthur. They were something so different from anything else in the world. He knew he was not the only one who thought that, Arthur had described them much the same way, because they just fit in a way that seemed unreal.



“I’m not letting him hurt anyone,” Arthur said with such conviction that Eames had to smile.

“Don’t worry; I’m not either,” Eames replied and he tapped their foreheads together gently. “He doesn’t get to take anything away from us.”

“I told him that he doesn’t know who he’s dealing with.” There was a certain level of mischief in Arthur’s eyes that was extremely reassuring.

“And he doesn’t.” Eames pulled away and grinned at his friend. “Let’s block out that window and get some sleep. Saito has quite the mess to clean up in Japan so let’s get our heads on straight again.” Arthur nodded and they both stripped out of clothes that smelled of fear and airplanes. Arthur closed the blinds and Eames practically pulled him into bed. He settled onto his own side of the bed, Arthur a warm presence at his back but in his own space, and Eames fell into a deep sleep.

He was not sure how long they slept but the sound of a phone ringing jerked Eames back into the real world. He had been dreaming, a natural dream, and he scrambled to find his poker chip. Arthur was slowly waking up and he creased his eyebrows deeply as he picked up the phone.

“Hello?” he said and there was a long pause as he listened. Eames did not lean in to eavesdrop, not this time, instead he fell back against the pillows and thumbed his totem. The dream, he could not remember it, but it left him feeling very off center in a way even his totem was failing to relieve. “All right, I appreciate it, thanks.” Arthur hung up the phone and stared straight at Eames, waiting for an explanation.

“I had a dream,” Eames said. Arthur raised an eyebrow. “I had a natural dream and I don’t remember it.”

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yes, I’ll be okay.” Eames yawned and rubbed his eyes. “How long were we asleep?”

“About twelve hours,” Arthur replied shrugging when Eames stared in disbelief. “We were tired.”

“Apparently.” he said. Slowly he sat up and Arthur did the same. Briefly he thought about pushing the ‘one shower’ issue as he did every time they both needed the bathroom but it did not seem like a good time. Instead Eames got under the hot spray and stayed there until his skin felt raw. His nose still hurt and a brief look in the mirror showed that the once black eyes were now more of an ugly green color. At least it’s healing, he thought. He exited to get dressed as Arthur vanished into the shower as well. When the other man returned, hair slicked back and changed into fresh clothes, it was fairly obvious that he felt much better. Eames was half tempted to make fun of Arthur for it but, in the end, he held his tongue on the basis that he felt much better too.

“Do we still have an ID for Ariadne?” Arthur asked. “We should be able to get out of the country , it’s not like she’s wanted like we are, but we’re going to have to vanish her once she’s safe.”

“I can get something together once I have the right supplies,” Eames replied pausing briefly to think. “We should all just go to Mombasa. Yusuf, while plenty capable of taking out an assassin with some random chemical, is a target too. We all might as well get together to figure out what to do.”

“As soon as we get Ariadne I’ll get us on the next flight to Kenya .” Arthur snapped his suitcase shut as he looked through his phone, “Ariadne has a pistol in her apartment but I plan to get out of here before Saito catches up. He’s going to expect us here and he knows where to find Ariadne but Yusuf has moved his sleep labs since the last time Saito was in Mombasa.”

“When a chemist doesn’t want to be found people tend to turn up with amnesia,” Eames said smirking. “Let’s go kidnap Ariadne.” Arthur rolled his eyes as the two of them walked out of the hotel. A quick check out, a rental car and they were on the way to the university. Arthur already had Ariadne’s schedule, and they opted to sit on the steps outside one of her classes as they waited for it to end. Eames lit up a cigarette that Arthur would pluck out of his hand every so often to steal a drag.

The door burst open and a line of students poured out of the building. When Ariadne emerged she froze staring at them. She looked the same, dressed in her normal scarf and jeans, but the brief horror in her large eyes caught Eames’ attention. Sh scrambled for something in her bag and he could see a chess piece in her hand. Seconds later relief flooded her features and she smiled.

“To what do I owe the pleasure, boys?”

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