Max laid the bleeding Renfro across her lap, driving slower than usual so that Lady Manticore didn't fall off of the motorcycle. Renfro's silver hair was slicked with blood and now almost frozen into sharp spikes from the frigid temperatures. Max wanted to believe that this lady would help them and free Logan from Lydecker's clutches. But, as Zack had said, "She's from Manticore…kill us on sight." Shaking her head, Max tried to block out such pessimistic thoughts. Yet, it wasn't easy.
Zack, meanwhile, watched Max with such utmost intensity that he nearly zoomed off the side of the road himself. What did she think that she was doing? Saving a protector for them? Honestly, Zack thought with a disgusted groan, both Max and I can take down Lydecker…and save Mr. Logan Cale in the process. Miracle Boy, my ass.
As Max and Zack turned the snowy corner, they finally saw it.
The building loomed high in their vision, and snow fell thickly on the pine trees that were scattered across the grounds. A bright light sliced across the field, waiting to pounce upon any escapees. Zack swallowed hard. It was the night of the escape. But, where were the others?
Max parked her motorcycle in some back foliage. "You want to jump the fence and sneak in? Or just politely knock on the door like a good little Girl Scout?"
"What?" Zack asked, not listening to her. The memories were starting to get to him, and he was using all the power he had to push them away.
"Fine. We jump it."
"Are you going to be able to make it with her?" Zack asked, giving a sharp nod in the direction of Renfro.
"She's not as heavy as you'd think. Unless of course, you'd feel better carrying her."
Zack shook his head. "You're the one who saved the witch, so you're the one who has to carry her." He didn't tell her that he had seen Renfro talking to Lydecker about Tinga before. Telling Max that would just get her more flustered, and she needed to be as alert as she could be.
Cautiously, they approached the chain link fence and stood on the hill, overlooking the monster building. Logan, Max thought, I'm here. And I'm not leaving until you're in my arms once again.
"She got a gun on her?" Zack asked Max.
Quickly, Max patted Renfro's side and pulled out a black pistol. She offered it to Zack who took it greedily.
"We'll need this…in case…we…" He didn't finish. What he meant to say was they would need the gun in case they couldn't get away from the guards and had to kill to survive. Kill or be killed.
Max nodded, understanding, but refusing to salute and bow to his orders. Just because he had been CO at Manticore, didn't make him captain of her life. She knew what she had to do. If Zack wanted to take out the guards, let him. Logan was more important than that.
"Let's go," Zack said and they hurried forward. In one swift move, they were over the fence and standing in ankle deep snow. And, once again, Zack saw the others running away from Manticore on the night of the escape. He bit down hard on his jaw and said nothing more.
Just as they were beginning to make their way across the field, a light focused on them. "Who goes there?" a guard asked as ten other men in black scuttled around Max and Zack. Damn, Max thought, they've gotten better at protection since we escaped.
"We bring a personnel from Manticore," Max said, trying to disguise her voice.
That's when Zack saw what Max couldn't. On the opposite side of Renfro's seemingly lifeless body, she twitched her left index finger, indicating something. That something would be capture. "Run, Max!" he bellowed, turned and gave one of the guards a smart kick on the chin before the other guards could react. Zack was over the fence and speeding away before the guards could even get started.
Max, meanwhile, who had never been one for acting directly upon Zack's orders had hesitated. Immediately, she was pinned to the ground, a knee in her back and a tayzer on her brain.
Renfro fell into one of the soldier's arms and smiled slowly, regaining consciousness. "X5-452," she said to Max. "I guess I didn't have to look as hard as I thought I would." And with that, Max's snowy world went black.
