Eventually, Max and Zack got down from the Space Needle, and Max called Logan on a pay phone nearby. She clutched the receiver tightly, her eyes darting around, worried almost, as Zack kept glancing about for Lydecker or his men.
A breathless Logan answered the phone. "Hello?" he gasped somewhat.
"Logan? You ok?"
"Max! God, it's good to finally hear from you. Where have you been?"
She paused and bit her lip. "Out…with…uh…Kendra…celebrating. I haven't seen her in awhile, y'know."
"Kendra?" Max heard the doubt in his voice, but he didn't question it. "Well, as long as you're ok."
"I'm fine Logan. Better than fine actually, I'm outta Manticore."
"You're welcome," he replied curtly with a little laugh.
"Oh, sorry, thanks, by the way." She turned and adjusted the phone, "Look, I'm headin' back over to my apartment. I'll give you a call…say…by noon? And if I don't, then you can start worrying."
He laughed. "You don't have to call me, Max."
"Yes, or else you'll get all upset."
"Talk to you later," he laughed.
"Yeah, same here." She hung up the phone with a click.
"Well?" Zack asked impatiently.
"C'mon we need to get to my apartment and get some new clothes. Hello? We're only advertising the fact that we're part of Manticore." They turned and hurried down the street, praying that Lydecker wouldn't be out this early.
Fortunately, Lydecker wasn't out, and if he was, they weren't caught. They scuttled up the rickety steps in the apartment building, not avoiding a couple stares from some of the neighbors. Max waved as politely as one could when dressed in a pair of sweats and looking like death warmed over.
Max knocked hurriedly on the door of the apartment, knowing it was locked, and waited impatiently for Original Cindy to answer. "C'mon, c'mon," she muttered to herself. Zack was glancing all about, tensed and ready to spring if necessary. Finally, after a seemingly eternity, the door opened and a sleepy-eyed Cindy answered.
"Yeah? Whatcha want?" she yawned, rubbing sleep out of her eyes, not noticing it was Max.
"Can I come in?" Max questioned. "Or am I just going to be hanging out in the hallway the whole day?"
Cindy's eyes snapped open at hearing Max's voice. "Boo!" she cried happily and wrapped her arms around Max's neck. "Yeah, you can come in. Wait a minute, who is this?" she asked, pointing to Zack as he stood frozen in the doorway.
"A friend," Max replied and closed the door behind them. "Go check in my room," she told Zack, pointing towards her room, "I think Kendra's guy might've left something here that you could wear...besides those things." He glanced back at Original Cindy, as if checking that Max was going to be okay, and turned, leaving the room.
"Damn girl. Guys like those make a girl wonder which way they should be swingin'. Alright, where'd ya meet 'im?"
Max rolled her eyes. "He's not my boyfriend."
"Uh-huh. And you'd just happenin' to be escorting a guy so fine that even Original Cindy got to question her ladies? Sugar, I don't think so."
Max sat down on the couch next to her friend. "You remember that I told you about the stuff that happened to me in the past?"
"Uh-huh," Original Cindy replied, adjusting herself on the couch to face Max. This was getting interesting.
"You got to promise not to tell anyone…"
"Tell anyone what?"
Max sighed, not sure whether or not to tell her best friend about Zack. But, then again, Cindy did have a right to know if Zack planned on staying. "He's like me," Max whispered in a voice so soft she could barely hear herself. Cindy's eyes grew wide and she smacked her lips together.
"You sure?"
"Yes, I'm very sure."
"What's his name 'gain?" Cindy asked.
"It's Zack," he replied stepping out of the room. He leaned against the wall, dressed in a baggy black sweater, and faded blue jeans that were stretched out in all the wrong places and hung clumsily on him. Having no other shoes, he still wore the heavy combat boots that he had received at Manticore. Still, he made for very good "eye candy", nonetheless.
