A day of firsts for me: I've been threatened with death by a green duck...

Someone asked me a fantastic question that I realized is crystal clear in my head and nowhere else so here it is:

Question: Do the Shadows know everyone in the Night Hawks or do they just know names?

Answer: Well remember way back to what ever the friggen chapter was where I have Fang explain that the Shadows are split in half? Half pro-Grey half pro-Fang? Well thats whats really important here. The members who are loyal to Grey are the ones who know Max is who she is. Fangs people are the ones who only know names. I will explain this more in future chapters but I realize you need to know that now in order to understand some things. It will all fall into place in the end :) thanks for reading you guys are awesome!

Also, Jace'n'FangLover just hang in there and I hope I don't disappointed!

HERE'S WHAT YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR!

Disclaimer: Would anyone actually read MR if I'd written it?

Chapter 25

FANGS POV

Grey was pissed. His plan had failed. The leader of the Night Hawks was keeping his gangs anger on a tight leash. He hadn't been able to draw them out into a physical fight. So now his game was a fight of the wills.

Grey was pretty strong willed. But this Max guy seemed, if possible, even more stubborn.

….

"Fang!" Grey called from his office. I groaned and rolled my eyes at a few of the guys that I was playing pool with before heading into Grey's office. He was pacing. Something he only did when he was conflicted.

"Yeah?" I asked in a monotone voice.

"I need you in the field today." Honestly? This guy may have watched one to many cop shows.

"Where exactly?"

"I need you to sit on the leaders' house."

'The leader', that's how he referred to the leader of the Night Hawks. Never Max. I don't know why. I think if he didn't put a name to the person his struggles were easier. Whatever, I'm not into psychoanalyzing people. Especially not Grey. I don't want to know what goes on in his mind.

"We still doing that 'Operation Flush Out'?" I asked with disdain.

"Sure we are. Never really stopped. We're kicking things up. I need you watching that house. Tell me everything that goes on. I want to be able to pick this person apart."

He's going crazy, I swear. But I can't refuse an order from my 'boss'.

"Yeah, whatever. Where do I go?"

He gave me an address.

Today was definitely going to be interesting.

…..

MAX POV

Angel and I were home alone today. Ella was at the mall with JJ and Mom was working. I was in the middle of making some lunch, my amazing mac and cheese again, when Angel called to me from the living room.

"Hey Max?"

"Yeah, sweetie?" I called back as I dumped all of the noodles into the colander.

"Why is this guy just staring at the house?" she asked sweetly.

I nearly dropped the pot I was holding. Watching the house? As in stalking? As in Shadows again? I thought they'd gotten over this, I mean; the stalking had subsided once we'd moved warehouses. I rushed into the living room and snatched Angel away from the window.

"Where?" I demanded, peeking around the curtain and onto the somewhat deserted street. All the parents were at work and all the kids were out doing something fun for spring break. Angel's friend was sick and Nudge was wallowing in self-pity, something that should be directed at me, because she'd broken up with Iggy. And now Iggy's wallowing in self-pity because Nudge broke up with him and because I won't tell her that I'm the 'boss' that she's so worried about.

Angel poked her head out around me and pointed across the street and down two houses, to the corner, where a guy in dark clothes leaned against the light post.

I felt myself relax as I took in the dark profile. I knew this person. Hell, I was dating him.

"Oh, that's just Fang." I said happily hopping up from my hiding spot and heading towards the door. "But what is he doing here? I haven't told him where I live yet." Curiosity peaked I slipped out of the house and onto the street.

Fang tensed when I first opened the door but relaxed when he realized it was just me.

"Hey," I said as I drew length with him. "What are you doing here?" I asked, hugging him quickly before pulling away to look him in the face. He had a confused look on his face. Not something I saw very often.

"Me? What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I live here stupid." I said, shoving him lightly. "What's your excuse?" He didn't know I lived here? Then why the hell was he here? The only other people who showed up like this were Shadows and that's just completely stupid because that would mean…

"I was supposed to be looking for some guy named…" he trailed off as we reached the same conclusion.

Then we jumped apart.

"Oh shit!" we exclaimed in unison.

I'm pretty sure that hell just froze over. Because if Fang was here looking for some guy than odds were he was looking for me which means…

"You're a Shadow." I whispered.

"You're the Max." he said at the same time. Well, my heart just broke! I backed away from him.

I felt dizzy, like someone had pulled a rug out from under me and I was struggling to keep my balance. And I couldn't. I couldn't because I really cared about Fang. He's the first person I ever even considered loving. And he was the enemy. I felt like I was going to throw up. Instead I started yelling.

"¡Oh, qué diablos? ¿Cómo es esto posible? Quiero decir en serio? De todas las personas que yo quiero decir ... vamos! Fang! Oh, mierda!"

"Max, look, I don't know exactly what's happening here but—"

"You're not stupid Fang! Neither am I! Well, actually that's debatable now, but you know perfectly well what's going on! And you're a part of this stupid harassment! Get the hell away from my family!" I shoved him before turning on my heel and running for my house. I heard running after me and I put on extra speed. I vaulted up the stairs to the front porch and was closing the door behind me when he stopped it with his foot.

"Let go of the door Fang or I swear I will crush your foot and call the police." I said in a voice that threatened tears.

"Max," he said in a tone of voice that I'd never thought I'd hear him use. He was begging. "Please just let me explain."

"What's to explain? I think we understand perfectly." I kept pressure against the back of the door so he couldn't open it further. Angel was crouching in the stairwell, watching me and Fang argue.

"Go to your room," I ordered her. She stared at me with wide eyes for a moment before running up the stairs. I heard her door click.

"No that's not all, there is more—"

"Fang please go away. I don't want to fight you." I said in defeat.

I felt his struggles on the door lessen. "Would you?" he asked quietly. "Fight me?"

"If it means keeping the people I care about safe," I whispered back through the door. Leaning against it instead of fighting to keep it closed. We both sort of stopped fighting.

I just couldn't believe that Fang would be a part of the Shadows. That he was stalking me not moments ago. That I always felt so safe in his arms…

Everything was silent. I couldn't decide if it was like the silence before the storm or the silence as you take in the aftermath.

"How could you be a part of them?" I asked at last.

"What do you mean?" his voice was defeated.

"I mean how can you go along with what the Shadows do? You stalk people! You come onto our territory and seek us out at our own homes! You put our families in danger!" I all but shrieked. "We haven't done anything but protect our territory and you guys just attack us."

"Its not all of us," I could barley hear him at first but his voice grew in volume as he talked. "Its Grey. He's power hungry. He thinks he's invincible. He's just an ass. And not everyone likes him. Half of us hate him. Max, just let me explain." He pushed on the door again. I wasn't expecting it so I stumbled backwards as he pushed into the house and closed the door behind him.

I took up a fighting stance but Fang held his hands up in surrender.

"Let me explain," he said again.

I was torn. I wanted a reason, justification, for how this great guy could be a part of something so awful. Then again, gangs are misjudged. I would know. I also had a little sister up stairs to worry about if things went south.

"Five minutes," I said, not moving from my protective stance.

"I am a member of the Shadows-" he said.

"No shit Sherlock," I interrupted but he silenced me with a look.

"But that's not uncommon. You of all people should understand that," he said suddenly. I felt my face heat up. I did understand it. "I was jumped in when I was eleven. I'm not one of those people who think they're tough and in charge because I belong to a gang, but they have become a second family to me. I care about a lot of them. Some of them are stupid and follow Grey blindly, but half of us…we just want him out. I'm second in command," he admitted and I felt my heart plummet slightly past my feet. "but I don't want to be in charge. I was trying to make it through high school and to get into college without any more trouble." I could relate to that. "I've tried to stop Grey. He's started doing things without consulting me. Tagging your warehouse? I didn't even know about it until one of my guys told me. This stupid stalking thing? He's relentless, no matter what I say. Understand me Max, I don't care if you're in the Night Hawks. You're still just Max to me. Please don't hate me because of which gang I got jumped into."

I couldn't stand up anymore, I crumpled onto the couch. Fang started to move towards me but I held up a hand to stop him. He froze. He knew he was treading on thin ice.

My mind was spinning. That was the most Fang had ever spoken. And he was speaking words from my own heart. He saw his gang as a family, he was jumped in when he was eleven, he didn't hold himself all high and mighty because he was in a gang. He was a lot like me when it came to that.

But he was also following what Grey told him to do today. Then again, what was the penalty if he didn't? He was as trapped by his gang as I was.

But that didn't mean that everything would be okay from here.

"I don't hate you," I said slowly. His eyes lit up. "But that doesn't mean that this will work." I said in the same breath. His eyes dulled again. "I really like you Fang," I whispered. "But there's just too much conflict. Sounds like a hell of a cliché right? But it's true. I'm the leader of the Night Hawks. You're second in command to the gang that's threatening my guys. I can't make that work." I said sadly.

"Who says that even has to matter?" Fang demanded, voice imploring. "We've gotten by for almost two months without having any issues between us because of our gangs. Just because we know about it now doesn't mean that things have to change between us."

"You were stalking me today. That kind of changes things." I pointed out.

"Would you rather me or someone who is on Greys side?"

"That aside." I pushed on. "You know how crazy this is Fang."

"Do you want to give up on us?" he demanded. "You said so yourself, you really like me and I really like you too, Max. I don't want to give that up over something we'll be out of in a few years when we're too old. If we met each other when we were twenty-one none of this would have mattered. Why don't we just do that now? Work around it?"

The sad part? I wanted to. That just makes me crazy.

I started shaking my head as I began to consider it. I felt a few tears leak down my face. Fang was there, wiping them away.

This was very emotional for someone who hates emotions.

I was still shaking my head.

"Does this mean that you don't want to try?" he asked.

"No, it means that we're crazy."

"But we'll try to make it work?" he asked hopefully.

"We'll try," I said, leaning my head against his shoulder.

This seemed a lot like Romeo and Juliet to me. I don't know why people say that's so romantic. The lovers died in the end.

And everything blows up! I'm a big fan of explosions, how about you? Well, what do you think? I thought it was past time that Fang and Max knew about each other. I was debating about a fight between them and everything but I like it better if they try to make things work out. Also, this is my hopeful translation for the Spanish: "Oh what the hell? How is this possible? I mean seriously? Of all the people for me to...I mean come on! Fang! Oh shit!" Just some rambling, but I thought it was more effective in Spanish. Tell me what you think! Review!

Peace!