By Valjean
Demon
They were afraid there would be thermal scans at the airport, but apparently all of the devices were being used by the police and National Guard downtown. Either that, or security truly didn't expect a transgenic to be flying Delta.
Alec went with Max as far as he could, to the first security checkpoint. Their kiss was deep, but brief, her mind already on the journey and what she'd find in Thailand.
He watched her plane take off from the shadows of a building by the parking lot. The wheels left the runway, the flight banked into the sun, and she was gone -- maybe forever.
This all felt so wrong.
And then he heard it -- a soft footstep, a sound way beyond human hearing but loud and clear to his transgenic senses. He didn't turn and look, merely reacted, whirling, his hand blurring.
Lydecker
The older man tried to say something, the words strangled by inhumanly strong fingers. Angry, but needing to know what was going on, Alec released him.
Lydecker stumbled backwards, rubbing his bruised neck. Finally, following a fit of coughing, he spoke. "Was she on that plane?"
"What?"
"Was Max on that plane!"
"Yeah. Why?"
Lydecker closed his eyes a moment, his fists clenching at his sides. "Damn it," he swore softly. "Damn it to hell."
Now Alec was getting scared. He took hold of Lydecker's shoulders, giving him a shake. "What? What's wrong?"
"Logan Cale's what's wrong," Lydecker spat. "The stupid bastard sent Max into a trap."
Alec felt as if the bottom had just dropped out of his stomach. He was actually shaking. "What trap? Who? White?"
"Foreign agents," Lydecker said. "An X5's DNA coding is worth millions on the black market. They're waiting to take Max captive in Thailand. That scientist Cale contacted is working for them. He used to be with Manticore ... knows all about the X5's. Cale's been combing the internet the past six months trying to contact someone to get rid of that virus in Max. This guy read between the lines, figured out a transgenic was involved, and set the trap. Cale took it hook, line, and sinker."
"How do you know this?" Alec asked, his grip on Lydecker tightening.
"Because I know the scientist Cale contacted, Dr. Alonzo Carpeni. He defected from Manticore almost two years ago. I went to see Cale to get information about White's group, compare notes. He told me he'd just sent Max to Carpeni." Lydecker looked up at Alec, his eyes truly sad. "I'm sorry I wasn't in time to stop her. There's nothing we can do now."
"What will they do to her?"
Lydecker shook his head.
"What will they do to her!" Alec yelled.
"Vivisection," Lydecker said, his eyes locked onto Alec's. "Dissection ... She won't be alive for long, at least not most of her."
Alec closed his eyes and forced himself to count slowly to ten. Flying off in a rage wasn't going to help anything. Manticore had taught him better. When he opened them, he found he could at least breathe again. "I'm going after her," he said. He glanced up at the sky. "There should be at least one more flight out tonight. I won't be that far behind her. Logan can get me a passport and ticket just like he did Max. He'll help me because he doesn't want Max hurt."
Lydecker was smiling sadly. "And then Carpeni will have a two X5's instead of just one. He'll love it. A breeding pair."
Alec's eyes narrowed. He wondered if Lydecker knew about Max's condition, or if he was just using the phrase. Either way, it didn't matter. The only important thing was getting to Max in time.
Alec was ready to scream by the time he finally made it to Joshua's house, having to sneak and creep his way around all of the checkpoints and constantly worried that a thermal scan would detect him. It was mid afternoon by the time he bounded up the steps of the old house, burst through the door, and threw a very surprised Logan Cale against the wall.
"You son of a bitch!" Alec shouted.
"Alec," Logan tried, gripping Alec's wrists in a vain attempt to dislodge his hands from his throat.
"You just couldn't let her go, could you? She picked me instead of you and now you've killed her!"
"Alec ..."
Alec knew he was capable of destroying this man, right here and now. He could feel the heat rising in his blood, the trigger on his genetic killer instinct effectively pulled. But then a vision of Max's face appeared through the blinding red haze of rage. Max had loved Logan. Part of her still loved him. She would never forgive him if he did this.
"You're not worth it," he muttered, letting go. The older man slumped against the wall, his breathing ragged. "Besides, I need you to get me to Thailand."
The heat and humidity struck Alec like a physical blow as he came off the plane. Slinging his backpack over one shoulder, he headed for customs where the passport and credentials Logan had provided were accepted without question. So far, so good.
He then went over to one of the natives waiting to give disembarking tourists a ride into the Bangkok. "Yu thii nay raeaem Hilton," ((Where is the Hilton Hotel?)) he asked in flawless Thai. That was where Carpeni was supposedly staying, where Logan had sent Max. However, it had been almost 15 hours since Max's flight had arrived, and Alec had a feeling he was way too late.
Of course there was always the chance Max had figured out the trap and gotten away. Which would still make finding her difficult because she'd be hiding. The only way to help her was to follow her trail.
Once in the city itself, Alec approached the hotel cautiously on foot, all of his senses alert, ignoring what would normally be a great distraction -- topless prostitutes advertising their wares from storefronts along the street. He'd been to Bangkok once before, on a Manticore kidnapping mission. He remembered quite vividly the wonderful generosity of Thai women. Unfortunately, he also remembered quite vividly the painful series of cyclosporine shots he'd had to take when he got back to the U.S.
"Ah, the memories," Alec murmured as a particularly buxom native woman winked at him. "Thoot khrap," ((Sorry)) he said politely when she approached him. "Kuhn khrap" ((But thanks anyway)). The look of disappointment on her face made him briefly smile, but then he saw the Hilton ahead and thoughts of Max pushed everything else in his mind aside.
Alec knew the name Carpeni had registered under. He went straight to the front desk and inquired if 'Donald Mason' was still in the hotel. As expected, the clerk told him Mr. Mason had checked out late last night. The room number, 23, was easy for Alec's vision to pick up from the records. He was about to sneak upstairs for a look around, when he noticed two burly foreigners seated in the adjacent lounge area staring at him.
"Change of plans," he said under his breath. Actually, this was good. Apparently Carpeni's employers had the foresight to realize someone might come looking for Max, and that the someone might be worth capturing. They could be a direct link to Max.
Alec went into the bar, stood at the counter, and ordered a Scotch. Out of the corner of his eye he saw one of the men go over and talk to the desk clerk. The fellow then rejoined his companion at the table where they continued to do an extremely poor job of trying to look inconspicuous while they watched him.
When he'd finished his drink, Alec tossed the barkeep a few bills and walked out into the lobby. The back door was down a short hallway just beyond the elevators.
He was waiting in the alley for them. They had guns, of course, but not for long. They'd obviously not been briefed on what to expect from an X5. In under five seconds Alec had one of the men lying unconscious on the street, felled by a crescent kick to the head, and the other pinned against the wall with his forearm.
The man was Middle Eastern.
"Ayna I Max?" Alec said low in Arabic. ((Where is Max?))
The Egyptian's beady little eyes narrowed, but he said nothing.
Alec pressed harder on his throat. "Arbaca khansa ithman," ((452)). Still nothing. "Hue tatakallumu I-Inkliziyya?" ((Do you speak English?))
The man, apparently realizing he wasn't going to be breathing for long if he didn't answer, nodded.
"Where did they take her?"
A shrug.
"Looks like it's gonna be the hard way," Alec sighed, as he brought his knee up into his captive's stomach. The fellow doubled over with pain, but Alec had no mercy, pinning him once more against the wall. "Where!" he roared.
Still no reply.
"Do you know what I am?" Alec hissed, his green eyes merciless.
The Egyptian nodded once more, his own eyes beginning to fill with terror. "Afreet," he whispered.
Alec smiled chillingly. "A demon? Guess that's as good a description of my kind as any. Ayna I sitt afreet?" ((Where is the lady demon?)).
"I will take you," the man said in English. "They are waiting for you anyway -- in the hills."
"You bet you'll take me," Alec said, releasing his trembling captive and waving him toward the end of the alley with the gun.