Hey guys, so sorry this took me so long. I had complications (both good and bad) in the guy department, catastrophes in the homework department, and a lot of crippling crunches in the dance department….but hey, all is good now, except for my abs, which are still on fire from the daily dose of torture. Ah well. Life is good, because here I am writing again, and I PROMISE another chapter this week if I get 10 reviews!

Disclaimer: So there's this Indian guy in my English class, who shows zero emotion and will grow up to be a dictator of some seemingly small country, which, under his leadership will buy all the shares in NASA, Google, and Apple until one day it rules the world. Anyway, I happened to mention how I'm writing a novel, and he just stares at me with blank eyes and then says, "You'll never get it published." He insisted that I would either never finish it or it would be complete crap. Well, as much as I hate to admit it, BB was right so far, because I've neither published my novel NOR Maximum Ride. Only JP is that cool.

Max POV:

Normally, I might mention how good the wind feels under my wings, or how the sun warmed my face as we flew west, or maybe how beautiful the ocean was below us, but not today. Most people find it surprisingly difficult to notice their surroundings when a family member is missing—and unlike most people, I like my family.

This was Gazzy, the second-youngest in the group, only eight years old. He didn't deserve to be separated from the Flock and kidnapped by white coats. Well, I guess none of us did, but he and Angel least of all—yet who did the scientists take? I'll let you have three guesses.

The question was how to find him. When Angel was taken, we knew right away that the pitbulls-with-wings would "escort" her back to the School, but this time I wasn't so sure. I mean, Jeb—who was obviously the brains of the operation—knew how fast the Flock, and especially I, could fly, which was more than twice the speed of the badly-constructed Erasers. Jeb also would know very well how quickly the senior members of the Flock would notice one of our own missing, and that we wouldn't lose any time going after him.

So Gazzy definitely wasn't being brought to the School right away—at least not by air. And, having slept in the immediate vicinity of the Gasman, I for one know that even when catatonic, this eight-year-old was not one anyone wanted to keep in a hotel room or small vehicle. So what would Jeb tell the Erasers do?

Nudge and I were keeping an eye out for anything out of the ordinary, be it winged mutants in the air, vans with storage chambers for holding noxious gaseous chemicals on the highway, or mobs of citizens running from mutants in the streets.

So far I had glimpsed a flock of well-fed cows, a coach bus full of teenagers on their way to band camp, and even the odd hot air balloon, but nothing suspicious. Nudge was flying thirty yards behind me, keeping uncharacteristically silent—feeling responsible for Gazzy's kidnapping had clammed her up.

And much as I wanted to reassure her that it was nobody's fault but the School's, we had no time to lose chattering. And I knew that Nudge would feel a thousand times better when we got Gazzy back.

So, with my brain on autodrive looking out for Gazzy on a course due west, I allowed my thoughts to drift. The Voice had fallen silent again, after its sudden reappearance and the resulting brain attack had knocked me out and into Fang's arms yet again.

Fang—that was a subject that would require some serious thought. For nearly a year I was convinced that I liked him, even kissed him. Man, that was awkward. But he was just so strong and handsome and quiet, it made my heart flutter every time I got near him. To add to the heartache, the Voice kept telling me to make my move. It obviously knew how much I liked Fang—it saw my every thought, didn't it?

But sometime in the last few weeks the crush had faded almost to nonexistence. What the younger kids—Nudge, Angel, and Gazzy—didn't know was that we were planning to set up permanent residence here on the island. There was unused land for us to build a house, public schools that looked relatively normal, and even a pizza place—what more could a bunch of mutant freaks want?

Hence the stacks of lumber hidden in the woods, the visit with P. T. Beecher school's administrators, and even the sandbox experiment that had woken us all up that morning—an event that seemed very long ago, let me tell you. But in the preceding weeks, I had realized that I needed to move on from my long obsession with Fang. Settling down made me think about having a family, and I wanted to start out fresh with someone new. Fang knew all my hopes, dreams, and talents, but he also knew my fears, my weaknesses, all the embarrassing memories I'd rather forget.

No, I wanted someone brand new. So life "back at the ranch," as I read in a book somewhere, had been looking up, since I no longer had anyone to worry about in that way. No more awkward moments, rapid heartbeat, or secret glances in his direction. And as for Iggy—well, he was a great guy, but I wasn't much for pyromaniacs, especially after he blew up my favorite shirt.

And now all of a sudden Fang kisses me! Just like that! I mean, what the hell was that about? Couldn't he have made his move during the year when I liked him? Wasn't that enough time to pipe in? But no, the strong and silent Fang would never admit his true feelings, especially about something like that. Like he avoided my question before I passed out—I mean, was it just a bet after all?

Answered it with a cocky-yet-not reply like "What do you think?" That's not a response! Does he expect me to just assume that he likes me, or what? Because that would cause some serious awkwardness in our little pseudo-family, especially since we were going to be dealing with a lot now that the Erasers had shown off.

Man, now that Fang was on my mind I couldn't seem to get him out. I remembered how his lips had felt on mine, soft and yet firm at the same time, cautious and demanding. It had certainly been a lot more interesting than that kiss with Sam, that traitor back in Anne's town. But was Fang what I wanted? I didn't even know what he thought about me. I was clumsy, bossy, and not about to win a beauty contest. Why the hell would he like me.

Focus, Maximum. Young Fang can wait, the Voice told me, sending a twinge of pain through my system. I dutifully shook my head to clear my thoughts and looked back at Nudge to see that she was still flying purposefully, her gaze locked on the ground and her lips still sealed.

Looking back down at the ground, I saw nothing but trees and the occasional grey strip of highway. By God, was there nothing but trees in New England? Scowling, I locked my gaze on the boring landscape and let up a silent prayer to no one that we would find our Gasman.

Two hours later, my hopes were shot and my wings on fire. Nudge and I had split up and worked out a grid search pattern, but had found nothing. There was nothing out of the ordinary—it was as if the Erasers had simply disappeared, and as far as Max knew, the white coats hadn't figured that trick out yet.

Dejectedly, she caught sight of Nudge heading back towards her, shaking her head in a silent 'no.' I felt my shoulders slump, my spirits fallen once more. I had hoped that this last possible twenty square mile plot of land might be the jackpot, but no, another disappointment. I sighed, catching up with Nudge midway between us.

"Ready to head back and try again tomorrow?" I asked dejectedly, seeing Nudge's wings beating fast just to keep her upright in the air.

Nudge threw my hand off her shoulder, flapping her wings with greater energy. "No, keep going."

"Nudge," I protested, "You're exhausted, and so am I. Let's head back, get some food before we collapse, and then head back out to keep searching."

She answered me by setting her shoulders and heading back out into the wind—right before her wings folded. I sighed, before resigning myself for a long dive down to catch her. Thank God bird kids were pretty light….

Alright, not much action, but lots for Max to think about! Don't worry, the fax is coming soon, as is the next update if you guys review! Come on, you know you want to!