Shadows of the Past
Chapter 1: Cry for Help
~Dark Angel is not mine,
never was and never will be. So if you planed on suing me I'm sorry I had to
disappoint you.
~PG-13 I guess. It's not
really necessary yet but who knows what I'll end up doing?
~PLEASE review. I'm not
sure if I'm gonna continue with this story yet, but if you like it I will. :oD
~ What would happen if Max
repressed all her memories of Manticore after the escape, and she found a home
with a family and grew up as a normal kid? But then one day her past catches up
with her? This is my take on the situation:
Dear Eyes Only,
I'm not sure if I'm doing the right thing by writing you,
but I don't know who else to turn to. I think I'm in trouble and I need your
help.
I was 'adopted' by the Guevara's in 2009 not long after
the pulse. All that I remember is suddenly having a home. My 'parents' took on
the huge task of taking in a child that they found on the streets of Northern
California with an unknown past and odd medical problems into their home and
raising her as their own. For that I am eternally grateful, but there are so
many unanswered questions. I didn't remember anything about who I was, where I
came from. Nothing, not even my birthday.
Because of the Pulse there was never an official
adoption, they just brought me into their family and called me their daughter
and that's how it stayed. I became Maxine Guevara. I have an older brother,
Noah, whom I trust more than anyone. He's actually the one who told me to come
to you for help. But to do that you'll need to know some things about me.
Growing up I was always
different than the other kids. I was smarter than the class 'genius', faster
than the track team and stronger than the jocks. I could jump higher than the
basketball players, and I could see in the dark better than anyone I knew, and
I never got sick - except for random unexplained seizures that I still get
today. I was constantly questioned about why I was so weird, but the mystery of
my tattoo became a favorite subject among my classmates. Why would a ten year
old have a barcode tattooed on her neck? The possibilities were endless.
I hated the fact that I couldn't remember anything from
before the pulse. I had so many questions that I had the answers to only I
couldn't remember them. My Mom always told me the reason that I don't remember
anything from my early childhood is because of a traumatic event or something.
And I would have been perfectly happy with that explanation if I hadn't
received that phone call I did last week.
Some guy called saying that he knew who and what I was,
and that he would turn me in of I didn't pay him $75,000 upon our meeting at a
Seattle port next month. The way he acting made me really nervous, whispering
all the time and talking about protocol and the threat of turning me in to some
unknown authorities and Manticore. It scares me to think that there's someone
out there who knows more about me and my past than I do. That's where you come
in.
I need your help finding out who or what I am Eyes Only,
so I can be ready for this guy when I meet up with him. I don't want any
surprises and I want to shut him down ASAP. I know that this isn't your usual
thing, but I was hoping you would make an exception this time. If you don't
help me, I don't want to think about what may happen. I could be putting my
family at risk, and that's the last thing I want. Their safety comes before
mine. I am really scared and I don't like it. I've never been in a position
like this before. I have never been this scared because I've never had a reason
to be. I could always handle anything that came my way. But this time I am a
sitting duck.
Eyes Only, please, I really need your help right now.
Sincerely,
Max Guevara
***
Logan Cale sat in front of his
computer as he finished reading the young girls desperate plea for help. Logan
had been a journalist since college and he always had a hard time resisting a
good mystery. And if what Max Guevara said in her letter is true this would be
the best mystery he had seen in years. Then again it could always been some
cheap tabloid concocting a tragic story in hopes of revealing Eyes Only's true
identity. It wouldn't be the first time. But there was something about this
girls story that made Logan believe her.
"Hey Bling?" Logan called hearing his friend
banging around in the kitchen.
"Yeah?" Bling answered emerging from kitchen
with a sandwich in hand.
"Where'd you get this?" he asked holding up the
letter in question.
"I found it in the contact room. Why?" Bling
asked sitting down in a nearby chair.
\\Obviously, Cale.
Everything that comes for Eyes Only Bling gets from the contact room.//
"Logan, what's the big deal about a letter? You get
them all the time. How is this one different?" Bling said breaking into
his bosses thoughts.
"I don't know. This girl sounds really scared. I
can't out my finger on it, but there's something...really wrong here."
Logan tapped the letter on his desk his curiosity obviously peeked.
"Did she include a picture or something? You usually
don't get worked up so quickly about total strangers unless they're
female." Bling said with a chuckle.
"Bling I don't use Eyes Only as a dating service.
Not anymore." he smiled.
The last time that Logan had
gotten involved with one of Eyes Only's clients she turned out to be a drunk
and almost wiped out his bank account with her gambling debts. After that Logan
had vowed to stay away from any and all clientele.
"Was there a number left so Eyes Only could contact her?"
"Nope. Looks like you've got some extra work to
do." Bling paused as he scanned through the letter.
"She could just be over reacting about a prank call
you know. Or letting her imagination get the best of her."
Handing the letter back to
Logan, Bling shook his head and smiled knowing his friend too well.
\\There are so many reasons why he's gonna take this case.
One being the female factor - even if he may not act on it, he can always
appreciate a 'work of art'. But even more than that, Logan can never resist a
mystery like this one. Especially when the government is involved.//
"You gonna get some more details on this
chick?" Bling called from the hall as he picked up his leather jacket.
"Who said I'm taking this one?" Logan said
reading Max's letter again.
"You'll take this one." Bling's voice echoed
through the room.
"I'll see you tomorrow Logan!" The front door
slammed shut before Logan could respond.
"So what if I do take this one? There's nothing
wrong with that. There could be a legitimate story here. This girl could really
be in danger. What kind of journalist would I be if I didn't at least check it
out?" Logan said to himself as he ran in a search for Max Guevara on his
computer.
***
The phone rang in the living
room of the Guevara's middle class apartment early that evening. Max and Noah
were lounging comfortably on the sofa watching old TV movies. Reaching over his
sister Noah grabbed the phone and answering with his attention still on the
movie.
"Hello?"
"Yes, Noah? Is Max there?" Logan said casually.
"How'd you know my name?" Noah asked, his
attention ripped away from the television. The worried tone in his voice caught
Max's attention, causing her to tense immediately.
"I'm a friend of Eyes Only. I need to talk to Max.
Is she there?"
"It's one of Eyes Only's guys. He wants to talk to
you." Noah whispered to his sister after covering the mouthpiece on the
phone.
"Gimme the phone." Max whispered back.
"Don't tell him.."
"Hello?" Logan called uncertain if anyone was
still on the line.
"I know Noah. I won't" Max said gently, taking
the phone from her brother's hand.
"This is Max."
"Max, hi. I need to get some information from you
for Eyes Only."
"Look I don't want to be a jerk, but I won't tell
you anything over the phone. And I won't tell some lackey either, no
offence." Max said leaving little room for an argument.
"None taken. But how do you expect any help form
Eyes Only without any additional information so he can get any information
pertinent to your situation." Logan smiled at the girls spunk.
"Oh I know that he needs more info than what I
already gave him, but I want to talk to Eyes Only directly - face to
face." Max said matter of factly.
"That's just not possible." Logan was slightly
shaken by Max's demand but he didn't let his voice show it. No one had ever
said that and actually expected for it to happen. Until now.
"It has to be. My life depends on it." she
responded with a desperate tone in her voice. Noah gave her hand a gentle
squeeze to reassure her.
"I'm sorry Max but for his own safety, Eyes Only
never reveals his identity." Logan said feeling torn. He wanted to help
Max, but was it worth risking his life?
"Then I'm sorry too. Thanks for trying to help. I
appreciate the thought." Max said ready to hang up feeling like she was
just handed a death sentence, but the voice on the other end stopped her.
"Max!" Logan called hoping that he had got her
attention, before she hung up.
"Yeah." Max said defeated.
"The Space Needle, 12 tonight. Pack for at least a
week." Logan said abruptly before he could change his mind, leaving Max
with a stunned smile on her face as she slowly hung up the phone.
"What happened? Maxie? What'd he say?" Noah
fired questions at his sister while he followed her to her room.
"I'm going to the Space Needle tonight, and from
there I'm going to Eyes Only's." Max stopped turning to face the tall
blonde following her.
"He's gonna help me! Noah he's gonna help me!"
she squealed throwing herself into her brother's arms.
"Well let's get you packed and figure out what we're
telling Mom and Dad" he said leading Max into her room shutting the door
behind them.
***
Max stood waiting at the base
of the Seattle Space Needle with her bag slung over her shoulder. It was the
middle of November and it wasn't exactly warm out, but Max stood unaffected by
the cold wind. The cold never did bother her.
"Come on. Where are you?" Max was loosing her
few patience quickly. Noah wanted to stay with her until her ride showed, but
Max refused.
** "I need to do this part alone Noah. I don't want you to
get hurt because of me. But thanks for the offer." Max kissed her
brother's cheek.
"Be careful little sister. I love you." He said
giving her a hug.
"You know I always am." Max said playfully.
"I Love you too." **
"Max?" A man called from the shadows starting
Max out of her thoughts.
"Maybe. Who are you?" She said settling into a
fighting stance.
"Bling." The man said stepping into the pale moonlight.
"Don't worry, I'm a friend of Eyes Only." He
said slightly raising his hands to show he wasn't armed or a threat.
"Eyes Only has a lot of friends these days. You're
not the guy I talked to on the phone." Max said still suspicious.
"No I'm not. But I was there when Eyes Only got your
letter. So you want to go see him or not?" Bling spat.
"How do I know you really work for him? How do I
know you're not one of the bad guys?" Max said weakly. The sudden change
in mood shocked Bling but it only proved how desperate and scared this girl
really was.
"Unfortunately you don't. You're just going to have
to trust me." Bling said taking Max's bag from her.
"Let's go see Eyes Only." Max said quietly.
"Okay, but first you need to know some things. You
can never tell anyone who Eyes Only is or where he is. If you ever give away
anything that threatens Eyes Only and his true identity he can and will make
you disappear without a trace. Are you sure you can do this? Why he trusts you
this much I don't know. And personally I don't think it's very smart."
Bling said flatly.
"Yeah. I can understand the need for secrets. It
looks like you're just gonna have to trust me too." Max said looking Bling
dead in the eye.
"Alright. The car's this way." Bling said
nodding.
Max took a deep breath, bracing
herself for future events before following Bling to the car.