19. Pacific Stronghold
Max beat the bushes. No Joshua, no Cindy. With each passing minute, her anxiety grew. She was certain they'd been captured. She'd checked the seedy residential area, and all the alleys. She even looked around the meager business district. There wasn't much there. A few shops were open for business, but they were busy and brightly lit, so she skipped them. Joshua would never have gone in any of them.
She was overwhelmed. Joshua missing, Cindy missing, Alec cracking up, murder, mayhem, secret hideaways, all in the space of a couple of days. It was a lot for a girl to process. Time to check in with Logan. Maybe he had a lead. She patted down her pockets and swore when she realized her cell was gone. She wondered how this day could possibly get worse.
Logan's phone rang, and he snapped it up. "Max," he breathed.
"Logan," she said, "I can't find them anywhere."
"White has Joshua," he said bluntly. There was no point in trying to break it to her gently.
"What?" she asked. "Where? How do you know?"
"I saw it on the news," he replied. "I'm sorry. There was a special bulletin announcing the capture of a dangerous mutant. I saw Joshua in custody. White was very much in evidence."
"What about Cindy?" she asked.
"No sign of Cindy," said Logan. He didn't mention that she was most likely dead; White would have no use for her.
"You saw Joshua?" Max asked. She sounded forlorn and far away.
"Max, come home," he said.
"What did you see?" she said.
Logan sighed. "I saw footage of White with a prisoner in custody. He had a bag over his head, but he had to be Joshua. Nobody else is that big. He was manacled hand and foot."
"He must be so afraid," said Max, her voice breaking. "Where do they have him?"
He knew what was coming, but he told her anyway. "They're at the Pacific facility. They didn't say so on the news, but I reactivated an old GPS satellite and practically watched a simulcast."
"You hacked a GPS satellite," Max said, smiling involuntarily. She was quiet for a moment, in admiration. Logan was very good at what he did. "I'm going," she said.
"Max, you'll never make it," he said.
Max said, "I have to try."
The phone line was open between them, but it was terribly insubstantial, no kind of lifeline at all. "I'll be careful." She hung up, abruptly.
Logan swore, and immediately dialed her back. The phone rang and rang, but she didn't pick up. She had neglected to tell him she was calling from a payphone.
Max hopped on her Ninja, and barreled through town. When she reached the city limits, she ignored the guard, who was waving madly for her to slow down. She lowered her head, floored it, and smashed through the barrier. He wouldn't chase her. He couldn't leave his post. Besides, she did it all the time.
To be continued. . .