"Mr. Madsen?".
"David".
"Excuse me?".
"I think we're far beyond Mr. Madsen at this point. Call me David, please".
Max stirred uncomfortably in her seat. In stark contrast to Chloe's junker, the interior of his muscle car was immaculate, permeated with shaving lotion scent of the particular kind, fellow narrow-minded guys, would immediately identify as a fresh, nice odor. In Max's eyes, this was by no means an upgrade. There was a comforting homeliness to Chloe's complete disaster of a vehicle with scattered crap all over the place and its funny smell, a carefully blended mixture of cigarettes, weed, men's deodorant and cheap shampoo.
That was Chloe's aroma and Max wouldn't trade it for the whole world.
"Sure, David it is then. So...there's a couple of other issues I wanted to talk with you privately before we address the Jefferson issue".
"Of course, just go ahead".
"I want the surveillance cameras down". Max said bluntly.
Mr. Madsen kept his eyes fixed on the road, seemingly undisturbed, The only clue to what was going on in his mind was a slight movement in his upper lip, right where his mustache ended, indicating that he was trying to construct a suitable answer. "You understand I meant to protect my family?".
"I do," Max replied without abandoning her serious rictus. "better than I did last week, still, good intention, bad execution".
"I see".
"There was this big argument regarding the cameras, I sided with Chloe and Joyce finally gave you the boot. Last week you ended up sleeping in a hotel".
"Fuck". David immediately corrected himself upon realizing that he had sworn in front of Max "sorry, I didn't...".
"Don't worry, I think we're also far beyond certain formalities".
"Yes," Mr. Madsen said absently "Thank you, I guess".
Max positioned herself sideways looking straight at him.
"Last week I was glad you got kicked out. We both know Joyce, she's tough, yet, she tries to be fair, I honestly think you deserved it. Then Jefferson happened and I saw you torn apart by Chloe's death...I saw that other part of you, the part that you keep buried under layers upon layers of authoritarian bullshit and I can't help but offer you a second chance...screw it, if I'm not able to offer second chances then nobody can".
"I'll try my best not to let you down". David replied with an affected voice
"There's something else," Max quickly added "the first time we met, in Chloe's room, I manipulated you both, made you look like a fool. I should say I'm sorry but I'm not".
"What happened? in Chloe's room, I mean".
The anguish in David's voice was patent. Max had to admit it, he was a lot more intuitive than she ever gave him credit for. He had pictured the whole situation at once and had accurately deduced that something awful had happened. Something so terrible that Max chose to erase it.
"You slapped Chloe".
David stretched his jaw in a strange gesture, almost as if he was absorbing a blow "That doesn't exist anymore?" he answered without averting his gaze.
"No".
"That's good".
"This has to remain between us, however, I want to be absolutely clear about it. There are many things I am willing to forgive... some others, I never will".
"I get it" after a slight pause, David asked "Would you mind telling me what lead us to it? I do not want it to sound like any kind of excuse, though".
"You walked into her room in a rage, it escalated from there. I don't mean to deny Chloe's part in it, but you slapped her".
"Fair enough," he replied with all the dignity he could gather "It's too late to apologize, but I assure you it won't happen again...I'll try to make it right this time".
"You better". Max stirred again, definitely David's car didn't felt comfortable "If it wasn't for you I wouldn't have been able to save Chloe. For that I'm going to be eternally grateful so don't take this personally, because it's not, but if you ever lay a hand on her again, I'll make you regret being born".
Such menace finally elicited a reaction from Mr. Madsen, who turned briefly and cast a long glance at Max, full of an undefined sentiment that could pass for pride. In all honesty, it was very complicated to follow David's mental processes.
"I hear you soldier, loud and clear".
"Good," Max replied with a smirk, "and now as someone put it, let's talk bidness".
Chloe was in an awkward position.
One foot on the first step of the staircase leading to the top floor, ready to return to her room. At the same time, a hand, belonging to her mother was pulling her sleeve, preventing her from proceeding on her way.
Max had just left. After corroborating that she wasn't indeed joining them, a pouting Chloe had escorted her friend to David's car and had stubbornly refused to let her go until she promised to stay away from any risk. Physically and psychologically drained, she intended to lie down and wait for her return.
Apparently, her mother had different plans for them.
"What do you want, Joyce?".
"I'd rather you call me Mom always and not only when you have to convince someone that your friend can travel through time".
Straight to the stomach. Chloe bowed her head fitting in the blow. Having spent a significant part of her life managing demanding patrons, Joyce was unquestionably several lengths ahead when it came to dialectical battles.
"What do you want, Mom?".
"I just found out you're alive only because of a miracle I can't understand".
"Not a miracle, it was Max". Chloe interrupted.
"Of course it was Max, but this is about us and we have to deal with it together, mother to daughter. I gave up on you a long time ago, I'm not repeating that mistake ever again".
Chloe suppressed her first urge, turn around and continue on her way, disregarding everything else like she had been doing for many years. The easy way out. But Max trusted her being better than that, she believed in her.
Oh fuck.
"You're right".
Joyce raised an eyebrow, now that was a real surprise. For the sake of cordiality, she decided to let it go without further comment. "Sit back, you have to finish breakfast and we have to talk. I don't care about the order, but there's no way I'm going to let this moment pass without us speaking to each other".
With her gaze fixed on the floor and not answering, Chloe turned around and made her way to the dining room where she sat down in front of her coffee. Joyce waited a few seconds and followed, stopping half-way to the kitchen and stared at her daughter.
"Are we really doing this?". Chloe asked
"Sure we do".
"In that case, I'm drooling over a bacon omelet," she said after pondering briefly.
"Breakfast it is then. I'll put extra bacon just for this time," Joyce replied with the most gentle smile.
"Shall we go over it, David?".
"As many times as it takes until we're totally confident". He replied in a professional tone.
"The body is there," Max said, pointing to an area of the junkyard apparently undifferentiated from the rest. "Nathan is our best shot, he's highly unstable and on the other timeline he was sorry for what he did. I'll provide full insight, in the first interrogation you have to unload all the big guns on him".
"Are you certain that's the best approach?".
"I'm positive. Show him pictures of the body, tell him that you know he bought the drugs from Frank Bowers, that he accidentally overdose her. You have to play dirty, guilt him while you show him you know all about his game. Tell him about his work with Mark Jefferson and the dark room. I assure you that he will collapse like a house of cards and serve you the case on a silver platter, including Jefferson and his father".
"OK," David nodded, "There's still the issue of how we sell this story without raising suspicions".
"I've already thought about that. Let's start with the body. Anonymous tip. From there you can use your own work, you can claim that you've tied up ends with your investigation. What kind of rapport you have with your contact?".
"Complete trust, no questions asked. Problem is he will not deal with it directly, he will hand it over to someone else".
"That's even better, you can give him the photos and videos from the dark room and he can help you straighten out the story".
"Where do you stand in all this?".
"Chloe and I are out of this business, it's your show".
"Um," David added thoughtfully "Do you understand that I'm going to take unmerited credit? your effort isn't going to be recognized by anyone".
"I don't need recognition. I need Chloe safe".
David took some seconds carefully brooding about Max's words "I get it. It's unfair, but I understand why you do it and I must admit that I consider it a wise move".
"For me, that's about enough".
"That's it then?".
"As a matter of fact, no. There's something I need and I can only ask you".
"You tell me".
"I need a complete schematic of the Arcadia Bay police station and a device that can disable the cameras for a while".
"Can you repeat that?". David said with a frown.
"I don't think they'll move Jefferson all the way to Portland without questioning him first, so ABPD station is the only option. I need a layout of the building and as I suppose there will be cameras, anything that can give me a shot at being alone with him".
"What would you need that for?. David replied with an alarmed tone.
"I guess you didn't think I was just gonna turn Jefferson over to the police, did you?" Max replied as she walked back to the car.
"It was delicious".
"Your mother won't know many things, but she sure knows her way around the kitchen".
"That's not it," Chloe quickly replied "I... I know it wasn't easy for you".
"No, it wasn't, but William wouldn't be so pleased about us. There's a lot more about being a widowed mother than paying the bills and put the bread on the table".
"And there's a lot more to a daughter whose dad passed away than shutting up from...".
"Don't," Joyce interrupted abruptly "let's not walk down that path".
"OK," Chloe said, bowing her head.
"Talk to me. Let's put aside what we already know, I want to hear about my daughter".
"About me?".
"If you'd died in that bathroom, I wouldn't have known what to explain to the officers, why you were there or who you hung out with lately. These last years you've been a total stranger to me".
"Dad wouldn't be proud of us, I give you that". Chloe lifted her head and fixed her gaze on the backyard, not focusing on any particular point as a tear slipped down her cheek "Every day I think about him, I feel like I'm failing him and...fuck it's hard, I miss him".
"I miss him too".
Ready to snap one of her bitter remarks, Chloe opened her mouth. Joyce turned her head and gave her a pleading look and that was the second time her daughter surprised her in a matter of minutes.
"He was the most amazing dad, I don't know much about marriage, but it's only logical that he would be an amazing husband too".
"He was, never doubt that". Rising over the table, Joyce hugged her daughter and kissed her forehead.
Chloe, needless to say, started crying.
"Shit, this is far beyond my emotional boundaries, I'm not sure how to handle it".
"Take your time... try telling me how you feel".
After taking a deep breath, she frowned thoughtfully, delaying her response until she was confident in her words "How I feel?" Chloe said in a trembling voice "angry, that you already know. What might come as a surprise is that I'm more frustrated than angry".
"What are you frustrated about?".
"Not what, who...Max".
"Sorry?".
"Ever since Dad died, especially after Max's departure, life has been so easy to figure out. There were those who fucked me and those who didn't. And everybody fucked me. You married really soon, David was an asshole, even Dad was to blame for dying not being his fault and everything... I mean, if Max could betray me, then there was no hope left for me. Rachel was a ray of light, but that was also denied to me".
"I'm sorry you felt that way, it was never my intention ..."
"A few months later, Max comes back to my life" Chloe continued by ignoring her mother's apology "and she chooses to reappear in the most screwed up moment of my shitty existence. The official brat tells me nobody will miss me and boom, he shots me in the guts...yeah, way to go, Max". Chloe briefly focused her gaze and seemed to acknowledge her mother for the first time since she started talking. "I'm not even gonna keep in mind the fact that she's leveling a town for me. Let's put it aside you know, like it's nothing and still she is the source of my frustration".
"How come?".
"It's just... You have to understand, no one has ever hurt me so much as she did. My accumulated rage is measured in tons, especially against her. I forced myself to hate her. When she shows up... she's been thinking all these years about me. She was so hurt by the move that she spent months locked up at home and when she had the strength to come out, she was terrified, can you believe it? she was terrified that we weren't friends anymore".
Nodding her head, Joyce made a small smile, "it certainly fits the Max we knew".
"Not a single day she forgot about me. The first chance to leave home, she comes for me...I don't know what happened last week, she told me that I guilt-tripped her. As far as I know, what I told her it's not one percent of what I planned, so I guess no matter what timeline it is, we connected right off the bat. Friggin' Max Caulfield, comes into my life and turns it upside down, not only she's still my best friend, but five years later she loves me even more than before. And you know what? It's not like I was close to death, I actually danced the fucking lambada with the grim reaper, so I decided to take this as a turning point. I thought, for once, things are working out. My friend is in town for the whole school year and we will probably keep in touch after she leaves which is more than I expected. But of course, she has other plans".
"What do you mean by other plans, I don't see Max forgetting about you when all this is over".
"No, of course not," answered Chloe unable to contain the weeping "She's given me a way out of this shit hole, I'm leaving Arcadia Bay with her".
"But you're not... your position isn't the best, you don't have a job, what are you going to do?" Joyce replied in astonishment.
"I know, I told her... and much more, I mean, the shit I honestly think about myself, like I'm not worth it and she'll get bored of me, etc".
"Don't do that" Joyce scolded her with watery eyes.
Overwhelmed, Chloe took out a packet of cigarettes and glanced slightly at her mother. Joyce made a faint assenting gesture so she took out a cigarette and put the packet back in her jacket before rolling up her sleeve, showing the tattoo-free shoulder where a bruise, in all blue and purple magnificence was clearly visible.
"She punched me, Mom," Chloe said as she exhibited the bruise as a badge of honor. And honestly, that's how she saw it, the physical evidence that Max believed she was worth it "I was explaining to her how she was going to meet so many interesting people and I would become a burden. I've never seen her so angry. She punched me and then she yelled at me, she told me I was the best person she will ever meet and pushed me to put my shit together, go back to school or get a job before we left".
"Wow".
"Of course she knew what happened last week, but it's not about that. Max sees me as if I were the most special person that ever existed, lighthouse or not, and suddenly it all piles up. You're with her on this one, you'd rather sacrifice the whole town to keep me safe, David shot a guy because he killed me and he is willing to die to keep me safe, hell, I've even made a new friend since Max came back. So I find myself devoid of enemies, probably never had any... all those years of bottled anger, it won't just..." Chloe gestured with her hands, some sort of smoke or evaporation. In any case, the sense was clear "it would be so much easier if I had someone to vent on.. This rage isn't going to go away anytime soon but I don't want it anymore, I want to be a better person, I want to be the girl Max sees in me".
"You are, honey. You just need to try to be yourself. You've always been that girl and Max knows it".
Chloe continued fidgeting with the cigarette, without lighting it, a gesture that didn't go unnoticed for Joyce who didn't take her eye off it.
"Rachel never cared about my future".
"Are you going to smoke that cigarette or not?" answered a suddenly upset Joyce.
Startled, Chloe directed her gaze towards the cigarette "I don't think so, I'm trying..."
"Give me".
"Uh?".
"Give me the damn cigarette".
"You smoke?".
"I quit when I got pregnant. I haven't smoked in 20 years, so give me that one right now before I rip it out of your hands".
Chloe opened the backyard door while Joyce lit the cigarette and gave one of those overacted puffs that were so popular back when it was still allowed to do tobacco ads.
"You might do stupid things, but as certain as there's a sky above our heads, I didn't raise a stupid daughter".
"What are you talking about?".
"Rachel, obviously. You knew it. I've put up with you for years pouting about how you'd like Rachel to be more like Max".
Chloe blushed right away, ashamed to see her misery so openly exposed "She saved me, she was the only one who cared about me".
"Yes, she did, but only as a friend. You have no idea how much pain it caused me to see you investing so much effort on something that was so obviously not meant to be".
"I... I didn't have anyone else...shit..., somehow I always knew. She was sleeping with several guys behind my back, maybe she didn't even like girls".
"I'm sorry honey, but that was a stupid call from the very beginning".
"We should have been more honest with each other, I'll have to learn to live with that. Now I will try to sort out my life, and wherever Max and I end up, I'll try to find someone who likes me the way I am".
Joyce stopped at half puff and frowned at her daughter.
I take back what I said before, you're absolutely stupid. You wouldn't be able to see what life has for you even if you had it right under your fucking nose (1)
With a smile in her mouth and all the warmth her southern accent could provide to her voice, Joyce replied, "I'm sure you'll meet someone else, don't worry about it".
"Take this," he said, offering Max a gun. They were parked away from the main road, at a safe distance from the barn. David had just finished a visual inspection, after placing back the binoculars in his bag he had pulled out the pistol that was now offered to her, handgrip first, with the barrel always pointing to the ground.
"I hate guns".
"I promised Chloe you'd be safe, if you insist on going in alone, at least take it".
"How are you supposed to protect me if I take the gun?".
David looked at her as one would look at a child talking in blissful innocence. "I brought another one," he replied, pulling another gun out of the bag.
Oh man.
Max reached out and took the gun without so much as a verbal answer.
"All right then," David replied with a satisfied expression plastered in his face "I will be waiting there," he said signaling to an elevated spot a few feet from the car "from there I have a vantage point. I'm pretty sure there's nobody there but better safe than sorry. Call me and leave the speaker on the whole time. Keep talking and describing what you see, I will guide you and explain how to proceed at every step".
Max turned around and grabbed her bag from the back seat where she had left it.
"Are we clear?"
"Yes".
"Be very careful, and remember everything we've talked about: Do not take any risks, follow my instructions to the letter, ask...".
"Here," Max said after a couple of seconds.
"What's that?" a confused David replied.
"A memory card. Stacked with photos and videos of the dark room. I also copied all emails from the computer, which was not password protected. You have more than enough to make them all fall, including Sean Prescott".
David froze, holding the card in his hand and looking at the young woman sitting next to him.
"I'm already back, It's done".
"Oh," David mumbled absolutely disheartened "Did I...?" he asked waving his phone.
With a faint smile, Max replied, "this was my gig, yours start from now".
"I'm never gonna get used to this," David said shaking his head.
"Let's go home. Chloe is waiting for us".
"Have you smoked inside the house, Chloe?" David asked as he closed the front door behind him, sniffing the air. The courtyard door was still open, which only confirmed his suspicions, yet David did not sound angry.
"It was me," Joyce replied without letting her daughter open her mouth.
David looked at her in confusion. The eyes of the two women were puffy, the hands of his wife rested on Chloe's arm in a gesture both protective and comforting.
"Don't say a word". Joyce said sweetly
David nodded and turned around, heading for the garage "I need to make a call".
Chloe got up and walked straight to Max, holding her tightly as if she wanted to make sure she was really there with her "I'm glad you're back".
"I'm glad, I'm back."
Without releasing her, actually squeezing her even more, Chloe sunk her face in her collarbone, breathing deeply against her skin. Chloe moved away from her only a fraction of second before the situation turned too awkward. "Now what?".
"Sleep," Max replied without batting an eyelash.
"Are you serious? it all starts now" Chloe replied, outraged at being left out again.
Max took Chloe's shaking hands "We have to choose our battles, we've already done our part. Let David take care of the rest".
A single glance at her mother was more than enough to convince her that if she really had to choose her battles, this wasn't one she was going to win.
"OK" she conceded, still downcast "you eat something, I'm heading upstairs, come up when you're done".
A while later, Max entered Chloe's room only to found her awake, sitting on the bed and ostensibly waiting for her.
"You haven't gone to sleep yet? you need to rest".
Chloe looked at her with an indecipherable expression.
"Is something wrong?".
"Listen, whatever happens, I want you to be strong. Even if you feel like I wasn't there for you...because I will never abandon you, Chloe. I'll always have your back. Always". Chloe recited from memory.
"You still remember".
"When did you say that?" Chloe added with staring fiercely at her friend.
Max took a deep breath. The meaning behind the question was unequivocal. "Last Thursday...that's tomorrow for you, I mean, you can figure it out".
"Yeah, I can...Why did you do it? You only changed a single thing in the past and it was that sentence. Why would you do such a thing knowing you were about to go away for five years?".
Max looked down in shame. Time travel is a very delicate business. For her it had been a few days, but her friend had lived many years with those words like a stab straight to the heart "I knew I was gonna hurt you...I wanted to give you hope, there wasn't more I could do".
"Those words... it was the worst betrayal, I hated you more because of what you said".
"I know you would, but that was a price I gladly paid".
"I see, another one of the many things you're willing to do for me".
"You don't understand," Max replied with an infinitely sad look, "I'm not doing it for you, I'm doing it for me".
Although it was still early, Chloe had already experienced an emotional roller-coaster. Numb, without a word, she simply removed her clothes except for the bra and panties and got into bed "let's get some rest".
"Give me a second." Max pulled out the phone and composed a message.
Max: Whatever happens today, it's not your fault.
Victoria: I thought I made it clear. No more texting.
Max: Tori, you need to be strong.
Victoria: Don't EVER call me Tori and you're again talking nonsense.
Max: Remember, it's not your fault.
After putting the phone away, Max looked at Chloe, lying on the bed and curled up on the side of the bed.
Without second thoughts, Max undressed and got into the opposite side of the bed. As soon as her body lay down, Chloe turned and leaned her entire almost naked body against her back, drapping an arm over her.
Like the easiest puzzle to figure out ever, composed of only two pieces that fit perfectly.
Exactly three seconds later the two girls fell asleep.
Author notes
(1) One by one, the great secrets behind our beloved characters are falling. Despite her southern warm, Joyce is very capable of swearing, even though she only does it in her inner monologue.
Another scoop brought to you by the leopard team