OO; I have been gone for so long lol. I shall post now! -evil laugh-

Chapter 9

Max POV

Sleep eluded me as I lay, very, very awake, in the hotel bed. I sighed deeply, turning onto my side. Have you ever had that feeling? You know, something that keeps on nagging at your stomach until you do something about it? Maybe I was just developing obsessive compulsive disorder… Likely…

I stared around the room. It was trashed. The hotel's soda littered the floor, stains on everything, including the lamp. And I'm not really sure how we did that, but there was a large purple stain covering half of it. Okay, so maybe that's a no on the obsessive compulsive disorder, but still.

I silently cursed myself for feeling this way, but I knew something was wrong. We weren't safe here. I knew right when Fang and I had stepped back into the hotel. And Fang… My face turned crimson. Nope. That was a one time thing. I would not let that get in the way of our, mostly mine, mission. Speaking of which, I still didn't know what the heck that mission was.

Yo, Voice, I thought, sitting up wearily, careful not to wake the girls. I waited a second, but Voice said nothing. I thought for a moment. Did Voice sleep? Hey, when you have a tiny voice in your head, almost anything's possible. Voice! I tried to think louder… if that's possible.

Yes, Max? asked Voice, making me almost jump, almost.

Any chance of you actually telling me what the heck my 'mission' is? I asked, rolling my eyes.

None at all, said Voice… almost sarcastically. I shook my head, trying to forget it.

Well, may I ask of you a request? I thought, thumping my fingers on the bed impatiently.

Yes. You may ask, said Voice. That was probably a, wait for it, no. I bit my lip and asked anyway.

Could you please tell me who you are? I asked. The question had been nagging me for so long. It wasn't Jeb, so who was it?

Max… you already know me. At least, you've seen me before, said Voice. I sat straight up, looking out into space. Whoa… Voice answering a direct question? It was a sign of the apocalypse. So… This meant Voice was a real person?! Even a geek sitting at a desk somewhere in Idaho?! I blinked twice, startled.

"Whoa." I finally breathed, my head pounding with this news. Okay, if Voice was a person, maybe I wasn't crazy. This is good.

Just then, there was a shifting noise as if someone was there. I tensed, staring out into the dark. My hands balled into fists.

"Hi, Maxie." said a voice, a deep voice. I jumped out of the bed, ready to kick some Eraser butt, but I was already in someone's hands. And before I had a chance to get away, there was a gag in my mouth, my hands being tied together hard.

I kicked hard and tried to scream, though I merely choked on my gag. The voice let out a tsk, tsk sound and then there was a sharp pain in the side of my head… and I was out.

--

Fang POV

I was giddy. I'll admit it. Had I just done what I had really done? Max… Max… Max… Thinking about her left me dazed. Me and her… It was like we were meant for each other…

Holy crap! Had I really just thought that? That sounded like those junk jewelry commercials. I shook my head, my muscles tensed.

"Pull it together, Fang." I whispered so low that only I could hear. Max was my leader, just my leader… But I wanted more.

I palmed my head, groaning inwardly. I hoped this wouldn't be on my mind all night. But nice things have a way of avoiding me so that was probably not going to happen.

"Fang?" called a voice. I looked up wearily. The small lamp near Gazzy turned on and I was staring into his dirt-masked face.

"Yeah?" I said, getting off the bed and walking over. Gazzy seemed to be nervous because he got up as well and stumbled over to me.

"I think something's wrong." he said, staring out the window on the far side of the room. I was immediately on the alert, looking at him seriously.

"What is it?" I asked, leaning a little so that my face was closer to his.

"I just saw a black car leave… They had a bag, a really big bag." he whispered, pointing toward the window. Gazzy looked right into my eyes, his own frightened. "And there was something moving in it." he said.

"Guys! Shut up! I'm trying to sleep over here!" cried Iggy, his form topless in the large bed he had called.

"Iggy, get up! Something's wrong! I know it." I said, running to the closet and pulling off my shirt. I remained topless for it was easier to move around and, well, fly that way.

"Lemme get a shirt on." I heard Iggy mumble from the other room. I raced back into the bedroom.

"No time. We don't know what's happening." I said then turned to Gazzy. "Get the girls. We have to go!" I cried, practically pushing Gazzy toward the door. He opened it and ran out. Next door, I could hear the girls complaining and then… frightened voices. I didn't linger on that thought and began to rummage through the junk we had brought.

Total, who had chosen to sleep with us for once, blinked open his eyes and looked at us. "What's going on?" he yawned, stretching out his small legs.

"No time to talk. We have to go. Stay here and, uh, guard the place." I said, finding the laptop in case we couldn't come back.

"You know how degrading that feels." snarled Total. I ignored him and shoved Iggy the lap top.

"Fang!" said an upset voice. I whirled around to see Gazzy, his face bright red. "Max is missing!"

Horror spiked its way through me, my skin getting goose bumps. "Holy sh-"

I shall post more soon! Max rocks!