If there was one thing at which Deleana Hererra was especially good, it was at keeping quiet.

Max had had Original Cindy cover for her at JamPony and she and Logan had spent a good part of the day trying their damnedest to pull from Deleana any worthy bit of information possible. The woman mainly retained a stony silence, though, and claimed that, before divulging her story, she had to make absolutely sure that she could trust the two of them. For her, it was either build a solid foundation or allow her secrets to remain as such. Logan subsequently found himself trying not to scream in frustration and an impatient Max, who continued to feel wholly out of place around this woman, turned to her usual mask of sarcasm to hide her discomfort.

"Oh, yeah, you can't trust us," she scowled. "We're totally out to get you; that's why we're going through all this trouble to protect you."

Deleana had wavered slightly at that, explaining cryptically that she'd made a mistake and that she's had to deal with "them" ever since. She didn't mean to be so distant and paranoid; it was just that she'd been on the run and kept to herself for all of 16 years and it was hard, and she needed some time. Any further attempts to get her to talk had seemed futile, so the two "operatives" had taken their leave, much to Max's relief.

Unfortunately for her, though, it was a new day and supplies were needed and, as had been realized earlier, Logan's involvement was going to have to be kept to a bare minimum, so with a bag of food and necessity she headed toward the safe house bright and early and filled with dread. She was unable to comprehend the aversion she had developed to Ms. Hererra and supposed that it was unfounded, but it existed all the same and the prospect of being the woman's "babysitter" didn't exactly fill her with glee.

She entered the small room quietly, taking extra precaution in case her charge was asleep and hoping that such was true. In that event, she could enter, deposit the groceries and exit as quickly as she had come, never having to speak or so much as make eye contact. Instead she found the bed empty and her heart fell at the sight of Deleana sitting upright in the single armchair that resided by the old-fashioned radiator, seemingly waiting for Max's arrival. For a brief instant the X-5 could only stand at the door and stare, but then a fabricated and apprehensive smile spread across her face and she moved swiftly to the bed, dropping the bag unceremoniously onto it and paying little mind when it tipped over.

"Hey, Ms. Hererra," she said, trying to sound cheerful. "Gotcha some toys." And then it was done and before the room could suffocate her she moved backed toward the door, knowing her actions would seem strange but at the moment focusing only on the need of her nerves. However, she didn't make it there; Deleana apparently felt the need for conversation today.

"I'm not happy with this arrangement, you know," she said softly but with an air of stern importance. "I don't feel safe."

Max's shoulders slumped and she glanced longingly toward the door, then with a dejected sense of duty turned back to the woman, wondering what in the hell her problem could be. As of late, she was shaping up to be nothing more than a hassle.

"Ms. Hererra, this is a SAFE house," she said, trying very hard not to roll her eyes. She then gestured toward the pistol that lay on the lone bedside table. "And we even let you keep your gun."

" 'Safe house' is just a title and one gun can only do so much," Deleana pointed out matter-of-factly. "I want something more secure."

"Well, ya know what they say...beggars can't be choosers."

"How trite," Deleana chuckled.

"How profound," Max retorted bitterly. Silence then passed between them and pounded loudly in Max's ears, urging her to utter a clipped farewell and escape the thick atmosphere and the undeniable tension. But then the woman was staring at her again, into her eyes, intense as her gaze had been at the previous day's meeting and burning through the younger girl. Max was a specimen again, open and naked and the subject of a strange confusion laced with familiarity. Her skin alighted and she felt the sting of a million pinpricks and the ignition of a million tiny fires, so different from the achingly pleasurable ones that Logan so commonly set nowadays, and she had to lower her eyes. This was so weird...so terribly weird...

"Anyway..." she muttered in an effort to break Deleana's concentration. It worked; Max felt the woman look away, embarrassed and trying to compose herself. In seconds she was again hard and stiff, and though escape still existed as the presently paramount course of action, Max relaxed a little and stood still and at attention, sensing that the woman had something else to say and preparing herself to listen.

"Yes, anyway," Deleana began. "I honestly don't see why I can't say with Eyes Only himself. The two of you, as well as that Logan guy, would both be able to keep a much better eye on me." She smiled slightly at the pun.

"Out of the question," Max answered firmly. "It would compromise his identity; figured you of all people would understand that."

"I heard that he let some woman and her daughter stay with him once," Deleana pointed out.

"That was a completely different situation. And besides, you could be some kinda spy."

"I am NOT a spy."

"Maybe not, but you good be a damn good liar and that's a chance we can't take." Deleana's face fell at that and Max found herself uplifted by a fresh surge of confidence. Whether or not she felt at ease around this woman, it was in her nature to feel good about climbing on top of the situation and approaching the title of victor, so she beamed and pressed on. This strategy might be just what was needed to drag the desired information from dear Ms. Hererra; Logan would be proud. "And ya know, I find it strange that you say you don't know if you can trust any of us but then you turn around and wanna shack up in Eyes Only's place."

Deleana sighed meekly. "I'm scared," she choked out, her voice barely above a whisper. A part of Max felt a little bad but she shoved it down, recognizing sentiment and sympathy as hindrance in a situation such as this.

"We're all scared," she stated, "but letting it take you over like this never helped anybody." She checked her watch then, knowing full well that being late to work after having ditched a day was not a smart course of action if she wanted to keep her ears intact. That same small part of her didn't exactly feel right about leaving, but again sensitivity was not to be employed in this case and if she left now it would allow Ms. Hererra to think long and hard on this.

"Look, I gotta go. I'm gonna be late for work. But the thing is, the way you act when it comes to these people who are after you bothers Eyes Only and he needs to know a hell of a lot more about them. Not just to protect you better, but to stop them from doing this kinda shit to other people. Now, you come through and tell us what's up, and we'll see about setting you up with Eyes, okay?"

Deleana nodded slowly, her eyes downcast and her demeanor that of one feeling defeat. Her protector than slipped out rather cheerfully, dismissing her foolish anxiety and feeling for the first time like maybe this case was actually going somewhere.
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Post.Script: Don't worry, kids...next chapter = ship-tastic. And there's only 3 more chapters until Deleana's identity is revealed, WOOT!

Yeah...on another note, this story isn't going to be very long, at least not nearly as long as 'The Weakness.' But I definitely plan on making it a series (I've already got a prequel planned), so such shall be made up for. Weeeeee.