Chapter Two: Shoot Out
Disclaimer: I'm too lazy to put it in, so… for the disclaimer, look in the first chapter.
Spoilers: Minor ones for all up to 'Hit A Sista Back'. And let's pretend that Max's transfusion cured Logan with no side effects, ok? Also, nothing after HASB happened :-)
Author's Notes: Thanks to ALL the reviewers!! You guys are fantastic! I'm eternally sorry it took me so long to get this chapter out!! I'll try to get the next chapter out as soon as possible. By the way, I know Zach's spelling is really 'Zack', but I've gotten too used to spelling it 'Zach' and the 2 of them are the same name, so what's the point in changing it?
Thanks a bunch to my awesome beta readers, lareina_Selena and PreciousJax, cuz without their wonderful beta-ing expertise, this would just be a bunch of meaningless words:-)
* * * *
" Are you sure?" Max asked worriedly.
Jondy zoomed in to see the badges on their uniforms and said, " I'm positive."
" Shit!" Max exclaimed, her voice instantly waking up Zach and Alex.
" What is it?" Zach asked, instantly alert.
" Lydecker's men are lined up at the damn border," Jondy said, punching the steering wheel. " What do we do?"
" Mother-f***ing shit!!" Zach cursed angrily.
" What do we do Zach?" Jondy repeated, slightly panicked. They had gone for almost 30 hours without anything happening and now they suddenly faced trouble.
" Keep driving." Zach said.
" Max, get on the phone with Logan. Ask for Lydecker's whereabouts," Alex suggested. Zach started to protest, but Alex silenced him with a glare. " Our chances are much better if we know where Lydecker is."
Max phoned Logan and seconds later she was off the phone. " Still in Seattle."
" Good. Let's try to just go straight through," Zach said, " If Lydecker's not there, we got a hellava better chance."
One of the men was walking up to their car and Jondy groaned inwardly. She slowed the car down and rolled down the window. After all, it wouldn't make a good impression if they ran everyone down. " What can I do for you sir?" She asked, plastering a fake smile on her face.
" Restricted area. No one's allowed to pass through except authorized personnel. Turn your car around."
Jondy looked at Zach through the rearview mirror. He gave a slight nod, indicating she should do what the officer told her.
" Sure thing," Jondy said, rolling the window back up.
" What now?" She asked Zach once they were driving away.
" Drive for about a quarter of a mile. We'll get out then and sneak over the border."
Jondy drove to a small country lane that was a bit away from the border.
They jumped out of the car and Zach ordered, " Alex, grab our bags from the back. Think you'll be able to jump over the fence?"
Alex nodded, " Yeah, I can do it."
" We're going to have to whip you into shape after this," Max teased.
" Don't I know it," she muttered.
" Jondy, make sure there are no signs of us ever being here."
" Got it," Jondy nodded, her eyes immediately sweeping over the car for traces of them.
Zach took a rag and began wiping the interior and exterior of the car down quickly, not with the intent of removing their fingerprints, but smearing them. If Lydecker found the car and there were no fingerprints, he'd get suspicious. " Ok, let's go," Zach said as soon as he was done.
They moved quickly and stealthily towards the border fence, but their attempts were in vain. Minutes after they left the car, they were interrupted.
" Hey! You! What are you doing here? This is a restricted area!" Someone called out.
All four heads whipped around and they saw 2 soldiers standing there. The guards' eyes widened when they saw it was Alex, Jondy, Max and Zack.
The second man grabbed his walkie-talkie. " Target is spotted at the border fence. Delta team, send backup."
Not a mere second after he finished alerting the Delta team had Alex knocked them both out. Zach finished up the job by snapping both of their necks. " Is killing them really necessary Zach?" Jondy asked.
" What do you think they'll do after they wake up?" Zach asked. Without waiting for an answer, he answered his own question. " They'll run to Lydecker and let him know we've been spotted. We can't leave any evidence behind."
Max snorted, " Yeah, and 2 dead bodies near the border fence is real inconspicuous Zach." Zach shot Max a glare and she knew better than to argue with him anymore.
The three women started intently at Zach, waiting for their orders and he said, "No way in hell are we going to be able to make it to the border fence before they get here. Fight them."
They nodded, blending into the shadows silently, waiting. Max thought for a second and then reluctantly took the gun out of her bag and slipped it in her inner jacket pocket. //Just as a precaution, I won't use it// she promised herself.
A second later, a group of about 40 soldiers came into view. As soon as they were close enough, the 4 of them jumped forward, letting their training take over as they eliminated as many of the soldiers as possible. This is what they had been trained to be, soldiers, killers, predators. Ironically, in their time of need, they were thankful to have their training, for the purpose of defense, even though they wished Manticore never existed.
" Alex, on your right!" Jondy called out, her voice devoid of any emotion as 2 soldiers barreled at Alex.
Alex quickly jumped up and kicked the men in their chests, knocking the wind out of them. She leaned down, applied pressure at just the right spot on their necks, cutting off their blood circulation to their heads.
Meanwhile, Max and 4 other soldiers were circling each other. //Come on, come on// she shouted at them in her mind //Get over here so I can kick your ass!//
Finally, after what seemed like years to Max, the soldiers got close enough so she could at least disarm them without advancing onto them, which would make them start shooting. She kicked the guns out of their hands and quickly took them apart. " Real soldiers don't do guns," Max said icily, knocking them out with 2 punches each.
Unlike Max, Zach had absolutely no problems with guns. He started shooting his handgun equipped with a silencer into soldiers right and left and before they knew what hit them, the majority of them were dead.
Max grimaced at the sight, still haunted from the sight of seeing Eva dead on the floor by Lydecker's gun. " Did you have to do that, Zack?" Max asked sadly.
Zack shrugged, " Hell lot faster than just snapping their necks. These bastards deserve to suffer before they die," he snarled, disgusted at Lydecker's men.
" Please don't use the gun anymore," Max pleading, never pausing for even a moment, a roundhouse kick disabling yet another guard.
" Fine," he said, tossing the gun aside, against his better judgment; he'd rather take his chances of getting injured than cause Max more pain than she'd already suffered these last few days.
As Jondy finished off 2 soldiers she was fighting solitarily, a third soldier was fumbling to reload his gun, preparing to shoot Jondy.
Time seemed to stand still for Max as the soldier raised the gun, aiming it at Jondy's back. "Jondy, LOOK OUT!!" Max exclaimed desperately, throwing a punch in the soldier she was fighting's face. Max was distracted for a split second, giving the soldier time to connect one solid punch to her jaw. The pain barely registered as Max grabbed his head and twisted it to the side with a sickening crack.
Jondy was too busy fighting the 2 soldiers, who were a surprisingly good match for her, to hear Max's warning.
Without even thinking, Max took out her gun and shot it at the soldier just as he was about to pull the trigger that would kill Jondy. The only thought running through her mind was //I can't let Jondy die the way Eva did//.
The bullet struck the soldier neatly in the back of his neck and the he dropped to the ground.
Max dropped the gun in shock, disgusted with herself that she had used it. She backed up into a tree and collapsed. " I used a gun. I used a gun," Max whimpered over and over.
When the last of the soldiers were finally dead, the other 3 rushed up to Max and Alex put her arm around her. " Max, are you ok?" she asked, ignoring the pain in her shoulder. Max's well-being was the most important thing at this moment, even though Jondy had a fractured wrist and Zach had popped his kneecap.
Max had a glassy, unfocused look in her eyes and Jondy shook her shoulder gently, " Max? Max, can you look at me right now?"
Max slowly looked up at Jondy and said, " I killed him. I used a gun." She started crying, " I used a gun!"
" Max," Zach said in an impatient voice.
Jondy shot Zach a death glare that said 'Shut up or I will personally make sure you will never father any children' and Zach shut his mouth.
" Come on Max, get up," Jondy said in a soft voice.
Max stood up with the help of Jondy, still crying.
Alex took her own cell phone out of her pocket and dialed Logan's phone number. Alex knew she couldn't run to Logan every time something went wrong, but this time, it would really help Max to hear his voice. " Hey Logan?" she said quietly.
" Hey Lexie. How come you're calling me and not Max? Is Max ok?"
" Well, actually… Max isn't ok. She used the gun."
" She used the gun? Why?"
Alex told him the whole story and he whistled, " Intense. Can I talk to Max?"
" Yeah. That's the reason why I called you. I was hoping you could talk to her and try and calm her down. She's pretty hysterical right now."
" That can't be a good thing right now."
" It's not. We still have to jump the border fence."
" Good luck on that. Hand her the phone."
" Aiight."
Alex gave the phone to Max and said, " It's Logan. Talk to him."
Max quickly took the phone and said tearfully, " Logan?"
" Hey baby. You ok?" He asked in a soft voice.
" I used the gun," Max whimpered.
" I know sweetheart. Alex told me. But you had no choice but to use it."
" I could've just ran up to him and disarm him. But I didn't. Logan, I'm a cold-blooded killer," Max cried out.
" No you're not Max, you're NOT a cold-blooded killer."
" You don't love me anymore, do you?"
" I love you just as much as I did before," Logan reassured her. His worry was increasing by the minute. If he had known she'd be this upset about using a gun, he never would've given it to her. He knew that not using guns was a personal rule of hers, but he didn't know she felt this strongly about it.
Zach watched Max as she talked to Logan and couldn't help but feel jealous. When they were young and still back at Manticore, Zach had been the one Max always confided in, the person she trusted with all her heart and soul. But now her heart and soul belonged to Logan Cale and he in turn, had became her lover and confidante. But at this moment, he had no time to reminisce. Max was injured and as her C.O., he had a responsibility to take care of her.
Soon, Max got off the phone with Logan and Zach cleared his throat. He wanted to let her and Alex have it right then and there about the cell phone, but getting over the border and into safe territory was more vital than any cell phone.
" Let's go," Zach said. While Max was talking, Jondy and Alex had tended to their wounds, Zach had painfully popped his kneecap back in and they had unintentionally walked all the way to the border fence. " Jondy, you and Max go first. Alex and I will follow."
* * * *
Logan hung up the phone when he heard the click of Max's phone being disconnected, feeling slightly guilty that he had given her the gun. He had talked to her 3 times already, but he still missed her like crazy. He tried to distract himself with work and thankfully, that had worked, but just barely.
Hours later, Logan got up from his computer and went over to the kitchen for a very much-needed break. He'd been working all day, ever since he got off the phone with Max after their first phone call. He tried to get some sleep and that had backfired. He was too used to falling asleep with her nice and safe in his arms, and knowing she was in danger right now didn't help at all.
He was just about to pour himself a glass of wine when the doorbell rang. He frowned to himself. " Who the hell could be at my door right now?" he grumbled. " It's after midnight!"
He threw open the door and was about to let the person have it, but his mouth dropped open in surprise when he saw who it was.
" Hey Loogie," she breathed.
* * * *
A/N: I have a way of ending chapters with someone appearing, don't I? Heehee… well, let's hope my betas aren't busy so I can get the next chapter out soon to make up for the delay of this one!! Please read and review :-)
Disclaimer: I'm too lazy to put it in, so… for the disclaimer, look in the first chapter.
Spoilers: Minor ones for all up to 'Hit A Sista Back'. And let's pretend that Max's transfusion cured Logan with no side effects, ok? Also, nothing after HASB happened :-)
Author's Notes: Thanks to ALL the reviewers!! You guys are fantastic! I'm eternally sorry it took me so long to get this chapter out!! I'll try to get the next chapter out as soon as possible. By the way, I know Zach's spelling is really 'Zack', but I've gotten too used to spelling it 'Zach' and the 2 of them are the same name, so what's the point in changing it?
Thanks a bunch to my awesome beta readers, lareina_Selena and PreciousJax, cuz without their wonderful beta-ing expertise, this would just be a bunch of meaningless words:-)
* * * *
" Are you sure?" Max asked worriedly.
Jondy zoomed in to see the badges on their uniforms and said, " I'm positive."
" Shit!" Max exclaimed, her voice instantly waking up Zach and Alex.
" What is it?" Zach asked, instantly alert.
" Lydecker's men are lined up at the damn border," Jondy said, punching the steering wheel. " What do we do?"
" Mother-f***ing shit!!" Zach cursed angrily.
" What do we do Zach?" Jondy repeated, slightly panicked. They had gone for almost 30 hours without anything happening and now they suddenly faced trouble.
" Keep driving." Zach said.
" Max, get on the phone with Logan. Ask for Lydecker's whereabouts," Alex suggested. Zach started to protest, but Alex silenced him with a glare. " Our chances are much better if we know where Lydecker is."
Max phoned Logan and seconds later she was off the phone. " Still in Seattle."
" Good. Let's try to just go straight through," Zach said, " If Lydecker's not there, we got a hellava better chance."
One of the men was walking up to their car and Jondy groaned inwardly. She slowed the car down and rolled down the window. After all, it wouldn't make a good impression if they ran everyone down. " What can I do for you sir?" She asked, plastering a fake smile on her face.
" Restricted area. No one's allowed to pass through except authorized personnel. Turn your car around."
Jondy looked at Zach through the rearview mirror. He gave a slight nod, indicating she should do what the officer told her.
" Sure thing," Jondy said, rolling the window back up.
" What now?" She asked Zach once they were driving away.
" Drive for about a quarter of a mile. We'll get out then and sneak over the border."
Jondy drove to a small country lane that was a bit away from the border.
They jumped out of the car and Zach ordered, " Alex, grab our bags from the back. Think you'll be able to jump over the fence?"
Alex nodded, " Yeah, I can do it."
" We're going to have to whip you into shape after this," Max teased.
" Don't I know it," she muttered.
" Jondy, make sure there are no signs of us ever being here."
" Got it," Jondy nodded, her eyes immediately sweeping over the car for traces of them.
Zach took a rag and began wiping the interior and exterior of the car down quickly, not with the intent of removing their fingerprints, but smearing them. If Lydecker found the car and there were no fingerprints, he'd get suspicious. " Ok, let's go," Zach said as soon as he was done.
They moved quickly and stealthily towards the border fence, but their attempts were in vain. Minutes after they left the car, they were interrupted.
" Hey! You! What are you doing here? This is a restricted area!" Someone called out.
All four heads whipped around and they saw 2 soldiers standing there. The guards' eyes widened when they saw it was Alex, Jondy, Max and Zack.
The second man grabbed his walkie-talkie. " Target is spotted at the border fence. Delta team, send backup."
Not a mere second after he finished alerting the Delta team had Alex knocked them both out. Zach finished up the job by snapping both of their necks. " Is killing them really necessary Zach?" Jondy asked.
" What do you think they'll do after they wake up?" Zach asked. Without waiting for an answer, he answered his own question. " They'll run to Lydecker and let him know we've been spotted. We can't leave any evidence behind."
Max snorted, " Yeah, and 2 dead bodies near the border fence is real inconspicuous Zach." Zach shot Max a glare and she knew better than to argue with him anymore.
The three women started intently at Zach, waiting for their orders and he said, "No way in hell are we going to be able to make it to the border fence before they get here. Fight them."
They nodded, blending into the shadows silently, waiting. Max thought for a second and then reluctantly took the gun out of her bag and slipped it in her inner jacket pocket. //Just as a precaution, I won't use it// she promised herself.
A second later, a group of about 40 soldiers came into view. As soon as they were close enough, the 4 of them jumped forward, letting their training take over as they eliminated as many of the soldiers as possible. This is what they had been trained to be, soldiers, killers, predators. Ironically, in their time of need, they were thankful to have their training, for the purpose of defense, even though they wished Manticore never existed.
" Alex, on your right!" Jondy called out, her voice devoid of any emotion as 2 soldiers barreled at Alex.
Alex quickly jumped up and kicked the men in their chests, knocking the wind out of them. She leaned down, applied pressure at just the right spot on their necks, cutting off their blood circulation to their heads.
Meanwhile, Max and 4 other soldiers were circling each other. //Come on, come on// she shouted at them in her mind //Get over here so I can kick your ass!//
Finally, after what seemed like years to Max, the soldiers got close enough so she could at least disarm them without advancing onto them, which would make them start shooting. She kicked the guns out of their hands and quickly took them apart. " Real soldiers don't do guns," Max said icily, knocking them out with 2 punches each.
Unlike Max, Zach had absolutely no problems with guns. He started shooting his handgun equipped with a silencer into soldiers right and left and before they knew what hit them, the majority of them were dead.
Max grimaced at the sight, still haunted from the sight of seeing Eva dead on the floor by Lydecker's gun. " Did you have to do that, Zack?" Max asked sadly.
Zack shrugged, " Hell lot faster than just snapping their necks. These bastards deserve to suffer before they die," he snarled, disgusted at Lydecker's men.
" Please don't use the gun anymore," Max pleading, never pausing for even a moment, a roundhouse kick disabling yet another guard.
" Fine," he said, tossing the gun aside, against his better judgment; he'd rather take his chances of getting injured than cause Max more pain than she'd already suffered these last few days.
As Jondy finished off 2 soldiers she was fighting solitarily, a third soldier was fumbling to reload his gun, preparing to shoot Jondy.
Time seemed to stand still for Max as the soldier raised the gun, aiming it at Jondy's back. "Jondy, LOOK OUT!!" Max exclaimed desperately, throwing a punch in the soldier she was fighting's face. Max was distracted for a split second, giving the soldier time to connect one solid punch to her jaw. The pain barely registered as Max grabbed his head and twisted it to the side with a sickening crack.
Jondy was too busy fighting the 2 soldiers, who were a surprisingly good match for her, to hear Max's warning.
Without even thinking, Max took out her gun and shot it at the soldier just as he was about to pull the trigger that would kill Jondy. The only thought running through her mind was //I can't let Jondy die the way Eva did//.
The bullet struck the soldier neatly in the back of his neck and the he dropped to the ground.
Max dropped the gun in shock, disgusted with herself that she had used it. She backed up into a tree and collapsed. " I used a gun. I used a gun," Max whimpered over and over.
When the last of the soldiers were finally dead, the other 3 rushed up to Max and Alex put her arm around her. " Max, are you ok?" she asked, ignoring the pain in her shoulder. Max's well-being was the most important thing at this moment, even though Jondy had a fractured wrist and Zach had popped his kneecap.
Max had a glassy, unfocused look in her eyes and Jondy shook her shoulder gently, " Max? Max, can you look at me right now?"
Max slowly looked up at Jondy and said, " I killed him. I used a gun." She started crying, " I used a gun!"
" Max," Zach said in an impatient voice.
Jondy shot Zach a death glare that said 'Shut up or I will personally make sure you will never father any children' and Zach shut his mouth.
" Come on Max, get up," Jondy said in a soft voice.
Max stood up with the help of Jondy, still crying.
Alex took her own cell phone out of her pocket and dialed Logan's phone number. Alex knew she couldn't run to Logan every time something went wrong, but this time, it would really help Max to hear his voice. " Hey Logan?" she said quietly.
" Hey Lexie. How come you're calling me and not Max? Is Max ok?"
" Well, actually… Max isn't ok. She used the gun."
" She used the gun? Why?"
Alex told him the whole story and he whistled, " Intense. Can I talk to Max?"
" Yeah. That's the reason why I called you. I was hoping you could talk to her and try and calm her down. She's pretty hysterical right now."
" That can't be a good thing right now."
" It's not. We still have to jump the border fence."
" Good luck on that. Hand her the phone."
" Aiight."
Alex gave the phone to Max and said, " It's Logan. Talk to him."
Max quickly took the phone and said tearfully, " Logan?"
" Hey baby. You ok?" He asked in a soft voice.
" I used the gun," Max whimpered.
" I know sweetheart. Alex told me. But you had no choice but to use it."
" I could've just ran up to him and disarm him. But I didn't. Logan, I'm a cold-blooded killer," Max cried out.
" No you're not Max, you're NOT a cold-blooded killer."
" You don't love me anymore, do you?"
" I love you just as much as I did before," Logan reassured her. His worry was increasing by the minute. If he had known she'd be this upset about using a gun, he never would've given it to her. He knew that not using guns was a personal rule of hers, but he didn't know she felt this strongly about it.
Zach watched Max as she talked to Logan and couldn't help but feel jealous. When they were young and still back at Manticore, Zach had been the one Max always confided in, the person she trusted with all her heart and soul. But now her heart and soul belonged to Logan Cale and he in turn, had became her lover and confidante. But at this moment, he had no time to reminisce. Max was injured and as her C.O., he had a responsibility to take care of her.
Soon, Max got off the phone with Logan and Zach cleared his throat. He wanted to let her and Alex have it right then and there about the cell phone, but getting over the border and into safe territory was more vital than any cell phone.
" Let's go," Zach said. While Max was talking, Jondy and Alex had tended to their wounds, Zach had painfully popped his kneecap back in and they had unintentionally walked all the way to the border fence. " Jondy, you and Max go first. Alex and I will follow."
* * * *
Logan hung up the phone when he heard the click of Max's phone being disconnected, feeling slightly guilty that he had given her the gun. He had talked to her 3 times already, but he still missed her like crazy. He tried to distract himself with work and thankfully, that had worked, but just barely.
Hours later, Logan got up from his computer and went over to the kitchen for a very much-needed break. He'd been working all day, ever since he got off the phone with Max after their first phone call. He tried to get some sleep and that had backfired. He was too used to falling asleep with her nice and safe in his arms, and knowing she was in danger right now didn't help at all.
He was just about to pour himself a glass of wine when the doorbell rang. He frowned to himself. " Who the hell could be at my door right now?" he grumbled. " It's after midnight!"
He threw open the door and was about to let the person have it, but his mouth dropped open in surprise when he saw who it was.
" Hey Loogie," she breathed.
* * * *
A/N: I have a way of ending chapters with someone appearing, don't I? Heehee… well, let's hope my betas aren't busy so I can get the next chapter out soon to make up for the delay of this one!! Please read and review :-)