Chapter 5

DISCLAIMER: I do not own DBZ, Leah’s soul or the formal dress of my dreams (it’s still on lay-by)

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“So, you make the pick up from the dealers once a week, and if they don’t have the money then they get a warning, which involves a lot of messing beatings. If they don’t cough up the money the next day or if they squeal to the cops then we take them out.” Bulma spoke matter of factly, drumming her fingers on the window as she signalled and turned left.

Unlike most criminal drivers Tien had had the pleasure of meeting, Bulma didn’t drive fast or aggressively. She was like an ordinary woman in his opinion. She drove too slowly and wasn’t aggressive enough, but she seemed content. Although truthfully Tien put the contentedness down to the fact that she had to handguns either side of her body in a cross holster and could have easily blown away anybody who gave her trouble on the road.

“So who makes the hits?” He watched with fascination, her blue hair gently stirring in the air-conditioning and her blue eyes reflecting the street signs. She was so beautiful and so talented. She could have been so much more then what she was.

“Usually me.” Bulma shrugged indifferently, as though death no longed matter much to her. “I’m one of the best marksmen, well markswomen, available for hire.” Bulma looked and Tien and smiled slightly. “I can tell what you’re thinking, you know. You’re wondering why a girl like me turned out to be a killer aren’t you?” She smiled ever so slightly and then turned back to the road.

“Well, yeah. I mean you come from a rich family that could have given you anything you dreamed of and you threw it all away to work for a bunch of criminals and law breakers.” Tien had to resist the urge to run his hands through her silk hair.

Bulma chuckled. “Money isn’t everything Sweetie. The honest truth of why I turned out like this is...odd. I’ve only ever told Eighteen about this particular neurosis and she laughed at me.” Bulma cracked her neck to one side and then continued, her innocently looking blue eyes watching Tien from the corner of her eye. “When I was a kid I couldn’t stand to see animals being hurt or killed, I used to get so upset that I could imagine killing the person who had hurt these animals. Then one day I did kill someone. He had been beating his dog almost everyday because it whimpered when he came near it so I walked out in the yard and shot him with my dad’s gin. I didn’t feel a thing, I didn’t feel the same pain I felt when animals were hurt. So began my life of killing people.” Bulma shook her head slowly and laughed. “It sounds stupid but it’s true, I guess I just feel sorry for animals or something.”

Tien frowned, “So you’re saying that you hold an animals life in higher regard then a humans?” He frowned harder, clearly puzzled.

“No, what I’m saying if that people generally aren’t as innocent as animals, all people are somehow tainted and…I don’t know…I just don’t care if I kill people.” Bulma looked at Tien out of the corner of her eyes. “Unless it’s someone I like.” She pointedly turned her head to face him.

“Do you like me?” Tien winced inwardly at the flirtatious sound of his voice, but Bulma smiled,

“Yeah, I think I do.”

“That’s good, I….” Tien halted in his speech as from the car window he caught a glimpse of a man dragging a struggling girl down an alleyway. He sat up straighter and turned to Bulma. “Bulma! Pull over! Now!” He gasped in alarm.

“What why…?”

”Just do it!” Tien roared.

Bulma glared at his temper but pulled the car over allowing Tien to leapt out. He grabbed his gun from the holster and dodged down the alleyway. The man who was holding the woman down on the ground with one hand looked up as he saw Tien.

“Freeze asshole! Put your hands in the air!” Tien pointed his gun in the classic cop gun style and ignored Bulma as she ran up beside him.

“What the fuck are you doing Tien?” She pulled her own gun out and pointed it at the man, still puzzled at his actions.

“Get down on the ground now!” Tien ordered clearly. The man released the girl and lay down on the ground like he’d done it a million times, which judging from his hardened look he probably had. Bulma stared at Tien with her mouth open, realisation slowly dawning on her.

“Get down on the ground? You…you’re a cop aren’t you! You’re a fucking cop!” She took a step back from Tien as if he’d suddenly grown an extra head.

Tien kept this gun pointed at the man but he looked at Bulma, her face was terrified but angry and her gun was now pointed at Tien, there was even a faint tremor to her aim. “Look Bulma…”

“Shut up!” Her scream was almost hysterical. “Just shut up! Oh God…you’re a cop!” She began to rant as though unable to believe that Tien of all people had been lying to her.

“Bulma would you just…” Tien turned slightly towards Bulma, taking his eyes and his gun completely off the man.

“Fuck you copper!” Tien whirled around in time to see the man on the ground pull out a gun from inside his jacket pocket, Tien started to turn the gun back towards the man but he knew he’d never get a shot set up before the other man fired. Then a gunshot echoed loudly and Tien jumped, eyes closed as he waited for the red-hot searing pain of a lead biting through him.

It didn’t come.

Slowly he opened his eyes; the man was laying in a pool of blood, his forehead a mess of blood and gore.

“Bulma?” Tien looked at his blue haired companion, her gun was now sighted at the young woman who was cowering against the dirty alley wall.

“Please don’t shoot me…” She was begging, one hand stretched out as though toward off the bullet.

“Sorry honey, but you’ve seen my face and you might tell the police about me.” Bulma shrugged and hesitated. “I am sorry.” She pulled the trigger and the innocent young woman fell to the ground, her eyes wide as blood oozed from the bullet in his own forehead. Bulma suddenly became aware of Tien’s gun pointing at her and she turned to face him. “I can’t believe you! All this time you were a fucking cop! I trusted you Tien! Do you know how rarely I trust people?”

“Bulma just let me explain.” Tien knew this was going to be a moment of trust and that he should lower his gun but after just seeing Bulma murder not only a criminal but an innocent young woman he couldn’t bring himself to put it down.

“Fine explain it to me Tien, explain why you deceived me into thinking you were a genuine nice guy.”

“It’s my job Bulma.” Tien stated simply. “I’m an undercover detective. I don’t like what I do, I don’t like getting people to trust me and then to have to knock people down, but unfortunately it’s my job to catch bad guys and sometimes befriending them is the only way.”

“So why did you have to make me feel this way?” Bulma shouted, her eyes turning teary. “Why did you have to make me love you?” A sob was torn from her throat and she spun away from him, ashamed to be crying in front of him.

“I didn’t make you do anything! Do you think this is easy for me? I like you Bulma. God, I think I might even love you and it kills me to think of you behind bars.” Tien willed himself to calm down and he finally lowered his gun. “I stopped enjoying my job a long time ago Bulma, but I did start hating it until I fell for you and knew that I’d have to tell you the truth some day.”

“You love me?” Bulma turned back around. “Tien, if you love me then why do you have to turn me in? Think about it, you hate your job but you love me and I love you! I do! We could just disappear, go away together where nobody could ever find us.” Her eyes were alight from some inner light.

“Bulma I can’t…I can’t turn my back on my friends.” Tien tried to ignore the voice in his head that was reminding him of him of how much he loved Bulma.

“You’re friends? Oh…Goku and Vegeta. I guess they’re cops too huh? Doesn’t surprise me.” Bulma sighed. “But they can take care of themselves…they’re not going to need you, not like I need you.” She touched his arm intimately.

“Bulma please.” Tien swallowed hard. “I can’t leave with you, and even if I did where would we go?”

“I have a safe house in Cuba, we could go there together. Not even Eighteen knows about this house, I was planning on leaving her and moving there by myself one day soon. But now I have you and….” Bulma trailed off again. “Oh, Tien you have to come with me!” She moved closer to him. Even though he was a cop he was still as appealing to her as ever; perhaps even more so.

“Bulma…I-I jus can’t!” Tien’s eyes widened as Bulma stood up on tiptoe to kiss him, her body pressed tightly against him. Her mouth opened against his and with a groan Tien wrapped an arm around her waist and melted into her kiss.

He’d been dreaming of kissing Bulma for so long…and now it was happening! He felt her tongue trace around his lower lip and he shivered as Bulma moaned into his mouth deliciously. She very slowly drew away from him, her lips a cheery red from the pressure of the kiss.

“Please Tien?” She begged softly. “We’d be so good together.” Her voice was burred with passion and suddenly everything seemed so unimportant to Tien compared with his feelings for Bulma.

It was true; he hated his job, he had no real friends except for his dog Choutzu. Even his family was dead…what did he have to lose? “Okay Bulma.” He agreed softly, nuzzling her neck. “I’ll come with you.” Tien kissed her again, knowing in his heart that he’d made the right decision.

After all, they loved each other.

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