May 16, 2024

Carmen was making breakfast when Azalea and Michael came in the
kitchen, while the Chief followed the two.

"You're up early," Carmen said.

"Out of habit," Michael answered. "Lydexter made us get up at 6 in
the morning when we were at the asylum."

"Actually we were doing a little kung fu against each other in the
back yard," Azalea said. "We woke up really early and decided to do something
to pass the time."

A cat brushed up against Michael's leg. "Hey, who's there?" he asked,
looking down. The cat looked up to him and purred.

"Looks like Zavy likes you," Carmen said, settling a plate of
pancakes on the table.

"You mean Sadie," Azalea corrected.

"No, it's Zavy. Z-A-V-Y," Carmen answered. "She was a stray when I
found her two months ago. Zavy is a beautiful cat, don't you think?"

"That's quite an unusual name for a cat, don't you think?" the Chief
asked.

"I named her after Zack and Ivy, Chief," Carmen answered, setting out
plates and silverware on the table.

The Chief fell silent. "I didn't know that."

"Hm. Zavy's got one blue eye and one green eye." Azalea said, taking
her place at the table. "Is that why?"

"No, it's because she's rather intelligent," Carmen said. "Zavy has a
tendency to take out the trash on her own, but she's not tall enough to put
the bag into the can."

Michael raised his eyebrows. "That's a new one."

"She also seems to like playing with the chess pieces whenever I
leave them out."

"Hm, a cat that likes war games," the Chief said.

"Can we eat now?" Azalea asked.

**********

"That was some good pancakes, Carmen," Michael said.

"Thank you," Carmen replied.


Zack and Ivy watched them rest a bit.

"Zack, do you ever get jealous of the living?" Ivy asked.

"Sometimes. When I wish I could see Michael growing up at our
home..." Zack answered wistfully. "And not in an orphanage," he added.

"Me too, little bro." Ivy said. "It's not fair for them."

**********

Street market
Madrid

"8000 pesos for a motorbike?!" Azalea put her face in her hands.
"Damn, I keep forgetting how much has changed..."

"It's alright, Azalea." Carmen said.

"Hm, 100 pesos for a ratty blue and green skateboard," Michael said.
Turning it over, there was a faded sticker tag. "'This belongs to Zackary
Darren.'"

"Say what??" the Chief floated over Michael's shoulder. "That can't
be!"

Carmen took the skateboard from Michael's hands. "It's Zack's. I
don't know how it wound up here, but I know what happened." She took out some
notes from her pocket and paid the street vendor.

"Carmen, do you realize what you just did?!" The Chief shouted.

"Chief, my name outside my house isn't Carmen, it's Maxine Cale,"
Carmen said. "If you wanna talk about this, I suggest we head somewhere
else."

**********

"Alright, Maxine Carmen, why did you just buy Zack's skateboard?" the
Chief demanded.

"Chief, shortly after you were shut down Zack and Ivy's house was
ransacked. Everything they had were either trashed beyong recognition or
disappeared into the hands of terrorists or the black market. All of their
possessions were gone. Before I fled Paris I was in San Francisco at the time
Wall Street crashed. The only things left to salvage were a few photo albums
of Zack and Ivy when they were children and their various items the
terrorists had missed. Since then I've hung onto them hoping that somehow
relatives or children of Zack and Ivy would come forward and claim them."
Carmen said. "I never expected Zack's skateboard to surface in Spain."

"Carmen, where's the house located at?" Azalea asked.

"If I remember correctly it was 2424 Lombard Street," Carmen
answered.

"Wait a minute! That's where Aunt Linda lives!" Michael said.

**********

San Francisco
Nighttime

"Mom, when will Michael and Azalea come back?" Isabel asked.

"I don't know, Bel," Linda answered.

**********

September 11, 2010
San Francisco

Carmen opened the door, looking inside. "Hello? Anyone?" she shouted,
her voice echoing back to her.

Going to the living room, she saw dust covered furniture and
wallpaper torn walls. 'No one has lived here for a long time,' Carmen
thought. She kicked something, and a small cloud of dust rose into the air,
revealing a broken PS3. 'Zack's Playstation 3,' Carmen realized. 'If it's
broken, that means the terrorists must've ransacked their home.'

Going upstairs, Carmen found a few faded photographs of a young boy
and girl. 'Zack and Ivy when they were children,' Carmen thought, sadly. She
picked them up and pocketed them.

It had been a year since Zack and Ivy had died. Two weeks after Acme
was shut down and Wall Street crashed. Zack and Ivy's children had
disappeared, no one knew their whereabouts. Their house had been abandoned
since.

Carmen entered a room with a Meatloaf poster, an old camp photo, and
a university banner. 'Zack's room,' Carmen shook her head. Zack's computer
was gone, his bed was gone, everything except a few photo albums were gone.
Leafing through each of them, they were pictures of Zack's life.

Exiting Zack's room, Carmen turned and headed into a room with a few
broken trophies. 'Ivy's room...so much has changed,' Carmen thought to
herself. Another photo album lay on the floor. Carmen picked it up and looked
through it. 'Ivy's life...'

Walking back outside with the photo albums and various pieces of what
she could salvage. 'Goodbye, Zack and Ivy. I hope you've found some peace.'
Getting into her car, two roses were left on the front door.

**********

Carmen woke up from the dream, but remained on her bed.

Rolling over to her nightstand she picked up a framed picture of Zack
and Ivy. It was that night Zack, Ivy, and a few others died from an
disgruntled agent, from what she had heard. The Chief was devastated from
their unexpected deaths, but he was shut down. All the Acme agents had either
fled, disappeared, or sent to exile, for the lucky ones. Those that weren't
sent to exile were never seen again.

So much had changed in the past one-and-a-half decade...Suhara had
died in 2010 in Japan due to his failing health, her good friend Samuel
Connolly had gone into hiding like her, Maelstrom was dead, Lee Jordan had
aged considerably but was serving life. Wall Street wasn't faring much better
than it had before the crash. Her friends were either dead or vanished,
Carmen hadn't heard from them for a long time.

'Could life get any worse?'

**********

Azalea found herself in a peaceful garden. 'Everything's so
beautiful, so quiet, so peaceful,' she thought.

Wandering around, she saw a redhead lady and auburn man with their
backs turned to her. "Mom? Dad?" she asked.

The couple turned around. "Azalea, we need to tell you something,"
the redhead lady said.

"What is it?" Azalea asked.

"You remember Lydexter, right?" the auburn man said.

"Yeah, what about him?"

"He and his network of friends are the ones who killed us and your
uncle and aunt. Lydexter already knows where you and Michael are at. You must
flee Spain," the redhead woman said.

"But why?" Before Azalea got an answer the couple disappeared. "Mom!
Dad! Don't leave me!" she shouted.

The redhead woman returned to Azalea. "Lydexter was a former Acme
agent. He never liked me or my brother Zack, who is your uncle. That's why we
were killed, and because of you and Michael, he'll do anything to get rid
you." Then she vanished once more.

"Mom! No!" Azalea shouted, reaching out to grab her, but only got
thin air.

**********

Azalea bolted from her bed, breathing heavily.

'Mom...she was killed by Lydexter...this can't be happening,' Azalea
thought.

She remembered leaving the asylum with Michael and Ryan feeling
happy...the thought of Lydexter coming after her and Michael was too
heartbreaking. If she and Michael were dead, the Chief would truly lose it.
Linda in San Francisco would be devastated, Ryan, Jennifer, and Scott in
Seattle would...Azalea couldn't think anymore.

**********

Carmen was doing some stargazing when Azalea came in.

"Can't sleep?," Carmen asked.

"Nope."

"Neither can I."

"Carmen, I had a dream concerning my mother," Azalea said.

Carmen looked at Azalea. "What was it about?"

"She and Dad told me that Michael and I are going to be dead if we
don't leave Spain...Lydexter's coming after us," Azalea explained.

"Jonathon Lydexter. I knew he was a bad seed when I was a detective
back at Acme. He quit Acme for unknown reasons in 2008, and former agents say
he's behind the Wall Street crash and Acme's downfall in 2009. But no one has
the proof to claim Lydexter actually did cause the crash and downfall. If
Lydexter's coming after you and Michael, that means the Chief and I are also
in danger for sheltering you guys. Is Michael up?"

"No."

"Azalea, get him up and get dressed. I'll wake the Chief up and shut
your laptop down." Carmen said.

"Where are we going to go?" Azalea asked.

"London."

**********

A port
Northern Spain

["Maxine Cale, American citizen?"] the harbor master asked, checking
Carmen's ID.

["Yes,"] Carmen answered, calmly, in impeccable Spanish.

["You may proceed,"] he replied.

Carmen drove up to a private yacht. She got out of the van and opened
the trunk, hiding the two teens. "Michael, Azalea, listen to me. You guys are
going to have to hide, since it seems like Lydexter's contacted everyone
through his network of spies. Don't say anything. Don't move, and try to
breathe as little as possible," Carmen said.

Michael and Azalea nodded.

Carmen helped the two get onto the boat, and laid them face down.
Then she covered them with some tarp in the cabin.

'Goodbye Spain,' Carmen thought. Then she started off for England,
with more cargo than anyone would suspect.