By Valjean
I Can't
The mission went off flawlessly. Alec led a team of five men out through the tunnel at midnight. He hadn't even bothered asking Dante's group for volunteers, instead picking four X6's and an X5 named Mario whom he'd worked with back at Manticore. They crept up on the warehouse Alec had surveyed the night before, waited for the 4 a.m. shift change, caught the workers totally by surprise, and hijacked two trucks full of non-perishable food. Alec and Mario drove the trucks, donning the drivers' uniforms and using their sector passes to get through the checkpoints. The trip down the dirt track to the beach was actually the hardest part of the whole adventure, Mario's truck providing a few moments of panic when the wheels got stuck in the sand just off the paved road. But they were able to drop the big rig into a lower gear and free the tires.
The rest of Terminal City was waiting for them in the tunnel, forming a living conveyor belt that moved the crates of food from the beach to the sewers under their refuge.
The tide was sloshing over Alec's shoes by the time the last crate came off the second semi, and pre-dawn light glowed on the horizon. Max had been coordinating things, dashing up and down the line of mutants, making certain everyone was doing his or her task. Alec found himself watching her as he helped unload the second semi. She was doing a good job, making decisions, encouraging the workers, calming their fears. Logan was, of course, seated nearby, offering his advice.
She's never once even looked my way, Alec thought. He wondered how long she was going to go on punishing him, ignoring him ... At least he'd done a decent job for her tonight.
With a weary groan, Alec tossed the last box of canned peas to Mole. "This ought to be enough for a few weeks," he said. "Provided nobody gets greedy." He made a wry face. "Wish it could have been pizza though. But there was no way we could store frozen food." He had a thought. "Hey, now that we have the tunnel, I can get take-out."
"You were pretty good tonight," Mole said. He pointed his chin toward a group of X5's who were standing near the tunnel entrance. "But apparently Dante's crew went out on a little expedition as well."
"What are you talkin' about?" Alec said, turning around to look.
"See the stuff they've got."
Alec's vision zoomed in on the crates scattered around Dante and his posse. It looked as if they'd held up a liquor store, or two, or three. Cases of bourbon, scotch, wine, and beer were piled around them. Some had already been opened and the men were swigging from bottles.
Alec frowned. "I just hope the idiots didn't kill anyone. And Max is gonna be pissed as hell if she finds out. A big part of tonight was layin' low so White doesn't snoop around too much and find our exit to the outside world."
"Dante's gonna make a fortune sellin' that stuff in here," Mole said wistfully. "I wonder if he nabbed any cigars?"
When the trucks had been cleaned out, Alec and Mario drove the rigs away to be ditched. Fully loaded, they'd never have been able to get them back up the cliff track, but empty they were light enough to make it up the steep grade. They left the semis in an abandoned shopping center parking lot on the opposite side of Seattle. Stealing a car and getting back to South Beach was the easiest part of the mission. They'd kept the drivers' passes and the checkpoints were no problem. Still, they'd cut it close. They got back to the tunnel just as the sun peeked over the horizon, but only had to swim a short distance before emerging wet and exhausted to be greeted as Terminal City's newest heroes by a crowd of very grateful mutants.
As soon as he'd changed into dry clothes, Alec went searching for Max, needing to see approval and forgiveness in her eyes. He'd redeemed himself hadn't he?
But she was holding gloved hands with Logan on the balcony in the command center, accepting adulation from her people, and didn't notice him standing all by himself to one side.
"We go celebrate?" Joshua said, coming up behind him. "Lots of food now. Even macaroni with little, little hotdogs."
"You bet I'm gonna celebrate," Alec said quietly. He'd spotted one of the X5 females who'd been with Dante in the crowd earlier. She'd blown him a kiss, but the look in her eyes promised things a lot more interesting. He knew she was still staring at him. Turning his back on Max, Alec smiled his most charming smile, and made his way through the crowd to her side.
Alec had come through for her. In spite of all of Logan's misgivings, in spite of all his past screw-ups, Alec had done a superb job.
And Max had to admit she wasn't that surprised. Alec was, after all, finally back in his true element, doing what he'd been bred and born for ... trained for all his life. He was a soldier, first and always. An X5 alpha male with all the genetic enhancements that implied. Looks, brains, and attitude, she thought wryly. Most of all attitude ...
Alec finally had a purpose in life.
"I should forgive him," Max said softly.
Things had finally quieted down. The food rationing was going smoothly, and the evening news had reported the stolen trucks only as a small item buried deep in the other events of the day. A series of vicious liquor store robberies was the top story, overshadowing everything else -- three clerks brutally murdered and numerous cases of booze, as well as cash, stolen by unknown persons.
She'd retreated to the command center to get some peace and quiet. Only Logan was with her now, the others either eating or bedding down for the night.
"You talking about Alec?" Logan said. He looked up from the inventory sheets he'd been scanning, adjusting his reading glasses on his nose. "He did an okay job today, but you're still going to have to keep him on a tight leash."
Max sighed. "I suppose so. Or else he'll get in trouble one way or the other."
"Are you going to tell him?"
"Tell him what?"
"That you think he did a good job."
Max hesitated. Logan noticed. "What is it, Max?" he said.
"I ... I don't want to talk to Alec unless I have to."
"Because you're still mad about his reconnaissance mission?"
"It's more than that," she said. "I just ... I just don't want to be around him right now."
Logan looked puzzled, but Max knew he'd never object to her wanting to spend less time with Alec. What he didn't know was the real reason why.
Max woke up three hours later and knew she was in serious trouble. OC had warned her to prepare, told her she shouldn't be caught by herself without someone to protect her, without a safe shelter where she could hide away for two or three days.
But she'd been too busy ... hadn't wanted to think about it. And now it was too late.
Max could literally feel the hormones surging in her bloodstream, her body temperature soaring. She sat up on the couch, frantically looked around for Logan, and was relieved to find him gone. He'd probably gone back to his own place to sleep. No one else was around either, the command center empty in the middle of the night. Usually Dix or Luke kept watch over the monitors. But their chairs were empty. However, one of them might come back at any moment.
Max started to panic. She couldn't be around anyone male right now. Not Dix or Luke, not Joshua, not Mole. She might ...
What am I going to do?
She considered the tunnel. The tide was out now. She could run, hide in the city somewhere until it was over then come back. But the thought of sleeping with strangers sickened her, and that was exactly what would happen. She'd go to a bar, pick up some guy, screw him for two days. Afterwards, if White didn't get her, she'd return and have to act as if nothing had happened.
She couldn't do that to herself ... to Logan ... to Alec ...
To Alec? Where the hell had that come from? Why would she care what Alec thought? Besides, she'd told him to go away forever. She'd told him that and he'd just looked at her, those incredible eyes flashing for just an instant with pain before filling with cynicism. She'd meant to hurt him and she had. And now he probably hated her. They weren't even friends any more.
"Max."
She closed her eyes. I ought to put a bell around his damn neck. She knew she didn't dare turn around.
"Max, are you all right?"
"Get out of here, Alec."
"Not until I'm sure you're all right."
"If you touch me I'll kill you."
"I believe you."
She could hear him breathing behind her. The sound was making her shiver.
"Max, come with me."
"No." She gripped the arm of the couch.
"You can't stay here. You can't go to Logan. There's no place to hide."
He was moving closer to her. She could feel his warmth, his male scent filling her senses. If he touched her he wasn't going to die. She was.
"Alec," she breathed. "I can't."
And then she ran.