Author's Notes:  First things first, this story is definitely AU.  I'm trying not to let the show influence me, and to be honest I doubt it will because I haven't watched much of this season.  A big thank you to my beta Lady Callie for putting up with me, and thanks to all of you who actually read my work. 

A Son's Guilt

The morning hours passed quickly and 8am found Logan diligently pursuing information on Hartwell, Delfry and his father.  There was information in front of him that Logan didn't want to deal with, and some of it he just couldn't handle alone.  He still didn't want to believe that his father was responsible for the genetic creations at Manticore, but Max was right if a man had the incentive he would do anything.

FLASHBACK

            A young Logan stands in the hallway outside his parent's bedroom listening to the conversation within.

            "What did the doctor tell you this afternoon?"  He heard his father ask.

            "The cancer has," his mother sobbed softly, "it's spread.  Chemotherapy and radiation won't buy me anymore time, Jarod.  I'm out of options."

            "No, we'll find another treatment.  There's a new drug available in—"

            "No, we've already discussed that, I won't allow you to sell yourself to save me," Elena pleaded.

            "I won't let you die when I know that I can save you.  You have to allow me to do this, if not for you then for Logan.  He deserves a healthy mother."

            "Doesn't he also deserve a father?"

            "I won't be going anywhere, and they said that I only had to work for them for a little while in return for the drug."  Jarod continued, "I'm willing to sacrifice this part of myself to save you."

            "I don't want to lose you."

            "And I don't want to lose you, which is why I told them I was taking the job," Jarod said.

END FLASHBACK

Dad definitely had the incentive, Logan thought bitterly remembering the early parts of his childhood, Mom was dying of cancer and he was strapped for cash.  Letting out a sigh of frustration, Logan dropped his head to his hands.

            Joshua had been watching Logan, unnoticed as he worked, and upon seeing the man defeated by his own demons he approached Logan.  "It's all right," he said placing a hand on Logan's shoulder.

            Logan jumped, "Joshua, you surprised me.  I forgot you were still here."

            "Sorry," he said looking down at him, "I'll leave."

            "No, no.  You can stay.  Max'll be back in a while, too."

            "Max left me?"  He asked looking oddly bereft.

            "No," Logan clarified, "she had to go to work.  She'll be back for lunch in a few hours."

            "Left alone with you?"

            "Um, yeah," Logan answered with a hint of uneasiness.

            "Can I tell you a secret?"  Joshua asked, his face suddenly that of a child.

            "Okay."

            "Max loves you.  She told me one night.  She talked about you all the time.  You love her, too.  But you're both scared," he explained, "I can smell the fear on the two of you."

            "We've both been hurt Joshua, it's not easy to let go and move on sometimes," Logan answered honestly, "but we're trying."

            "No more hurt.  Freedom means no more hurt."

            "I guess you're right," Logan said smiling.  "Are you hungry?"  At Joshua's nod, Logan stood up and walked towards the kitchen, "C'mon I'll make us some breakfast, if you're anything like Max I'll have to restock the shelves every few hours."

            After breakfast the two returned to the office and continued researching in companionable silence.  Logan found that Joshua could not only read he had excellent retention skills.

            "Michael Kristoff," Joshua stated suddenly breaking the four hour-long silence.

            "What?" Logan asked looking up from the computer screen.

            "Michael Kristoff, I know that name," Joshua said looking at the file in front of him.  "He worked with Father."

            At the same time Logan said, "He was a friend of my dad's."

            Logan looked at Joshua as a pang of regret and guilt washed over him.  "I'm so sorry for what he did to you Joshua."           

            "He created me, was nice to me."

            "But you didn't deserve to be manipulated like this."

            "This is me," Joshua stated looking at Logan, "I am unique.  Don't feel sorry for me Logan, I don't.  And don't blame yourself for something your father did."

            "Okay, now you sound like Max," Logan said with a laugh.

            "Well, is that a bad thing?" Max asked with a smile as she came into the room.  "What have the two of you turned up this morning?"

            "Well," Logan began, "we have a list of my father's known associates and even bigger list of pseudonyms for Manticore, more so than previous research led me to believe.  Joshua has been a great help, he was able to snag folders and projects from the building—he remembered on of the names."  Logan said as he recalled a past screen on his computer, "Falcor Industries located in the farmlands of Eastern Kentucky in a county called Powell.  A few years ago, Falcor was bought by Intia, which is owned by the Corvay Company, which is a subsidiary of Atla and that is owned by Otra which is a subsidiary of a subsidiary of a subsidiary of Manticore," Logan rushed seeing the look on Max's face.

            "Seems pretty far removed though Logan to be what we're looking for," Max said.

            "That's what I thought, until I found this," Logan continued pulling up a screen, "transport manifest.  Intia has been sending 'experimental products' to Falcor for the past four months."

            "7-2-8-5-9-6-4-3," Joshua said, "a code from one of the folders."

            "A password?"  Max questioned.

            "Worth a shot," Logan replied glancing at Max and then to Joshua.  "Are you positive about the numbers?"

            "Yes, I remember seeing it with the name Falcor written behind it."

            "Okay, let's try this," Logan said as he hacked backed into the mainframe of Falcor and entered the password.  After a few moments the words Processing was quickly proceeded by Authorized Access.  "We're in," Logan said staring intently at the massive amounts of data now filling his screen.  From here they could view the inventory manifests of Falcor, the accounting records, the employee database, and somewhere hidden in all of the information was the cure for Max's virus.  And buried under the façade of Falcor and the genetic sequencing, Logan would find the truth about his father.