A/N Sorry about the time I took tgo do this. School exams, yucky...
Private corporation, Part Eight.
"Max!" Alec shouted again.
"What are you doing here?" She shouted back. She'd made herself run, following Alec to the perimeter of the property. He jumped a low fence and ducked into a clump of bushes that had conviniently grown wild.
"You asked me to come," Alec said calmly. "You owe me big, but. I nearly got caught twice in there, and I think I've singed my eyebrows."
Max nearly laughed. "You poor thing," she said. "I take it you lit the fire?"
"Who else? Come on," he said quickly as sounds of yelling reached their ears. "You know," he continued as they walked, "you can't just keep disappearing. Maybe you should actually stop and get them what they want, then escape."
"Why would I have any reason to need to escape then?" Max asked.
Alec rolled his eyes. "You don't get it, do you? There not going to say, 'ok, you've done what we asked, now you can go.' They're going to have to get rid of everybody who knows you stole that disk from them. At the moment, they only know of you."
Max was about to protest this, when it hit home that he was probably right. He'd actually grown up at Manticore. He'd have some idea what they would and wouldn't do. Well, maybe grown up wasn't the right phrase, Max reflected wryly. Trained or Hand bred, those might suit.
"So what do you suggest I do?" Max asked. "Throw myself back into the room, try to tie myself up before Michaela gets back and declare that I only exist to do her bidding?"
"No," Alec replied. "I'd say more ring them, get them to meet you somewhere and set down some ground rules. Maybe they won't insist on seeing you 24/7 if you agree to check in by phone everyday."
"Tried that."
"You could drop in the not-so-little fact that you know Eyes Only," Alec said. Max stared at him. "Well, it works. Think about it. He could expose the CIA. Show them up again. Plus," he added with a bit of a grin, "it might take some of the heat off our type of transgenic."
He had a point, Max thought grudgingly. But could she do that? It wouldn't put Logan in danger after all. Or would it?
Logan
Logan was sitting in his apartment, worrying over the rescue effort and scanning files on his computer at the same time. He was trying to find out as much as he could about the CIA, in the off-chance it would help Max. Plus it stopped him from stressing too badly.
The phone rang. He prayed it would be Max. He dreaded it would be Alec, telling him the plan had failed. "Hello?"
"I got a message from you," Lydecker said. "What's all this about?"
"Oh, it's you. Well. I don't know all the details myself, but Max said to tell you to lay low for a few days."
"Why?" Lydecker asked. "She's never really cared before."
"What do you know about the CIA?" Logan asked, and was rewarded by dead silence from the other end of the connection. "You still there?"
"Why do you want to know about the CIA?" Lydecker's voice was deceptively calm. "They disbanded in 2006."
"No, they didn't. They became some sort of Private Corporation. Now they run with transgenics. They claim you stole their files to start Manticore."
"That's impossible."
"Which part?" Logan asked. "The fact that they still exist, the fact that they create transgenics, or the fact that you stole their experiments?"
"I don't believe it," Lydecker said, as if to himself. "Yeah, I stole their files. They weren't using them, but I didn't know it was because they didn't work at first. Until I created my first batch of transgenics. So why do i need to worry about them now?"
"They're after Manticore. When it burnt down, they decided they'd have the disk. You know, that one you have."
"Oh. So you want be to be quiet, stay out of the picture and hand over files which could endanger everything I've worked for?"
"Something like that."
"Or not."
"Listen," Logan said, temper beginning to edge his voice. "Everything you worked for was lost when you got the boot. It was then lost to everyone when the damn place burnt down. Right now, giving over the disk would only save Max's life."
"And what do you think the CIA is going to do with it? There's records of evrybody who worked at Manticore, you know. Staff lists. Repairs. Doctors. Directors. Officials."
"And what good will it do them? If anyone who worked there had any brains, they'd either be in another country by now, or lying very low." The familair beep of call waiting broke into the argument. "I have to go," Logan said, and cut the connection. "Jerk."
"Oh, thanks," Asha's voice came through the phone.
"Asha! I didn't mean you. I was on the other line, and..."
"Whatever," Asha broke in. "I was calling to apologise. I was way out of line. I shoultdn't have been spying on you, and I shouldn't have left like that. I should have faced my punishment."
"What punishment?" Logan asked vaguely. He was scannign the computer screen, looking for something that had caught his attentikon for a split second before he lost it."
"Oh, you didn't hear Alec dishing it out to me? Well, anyway. I was wondering if we could have dinner. You know, for an apology. Just as friends," she added quickly. "Are you at home?"
"Um-hmm," Logan replied, reading through the information.
"Cool. I'll be there in about fifteen minutes." Asha hung up and Logan held the dead phone for a few sceonds before hanging it up.
He was reading through the file that had caught his attention, the actual uses for CIA transgenics and their strengths when the door opened. "Hey," he called. "Come on in."
Asha entered the room, carrying a bottle of wine. "Hey," she said. "It's red, hope you don't mind."
"Um, yeah - ok. Listen, Max might be here soon -" Logan begann, but was cut off by Asha's laugh.
"That shouldn't matter. We're only friends, aren't we?" There was a pause, which Logan finally figured out he was meant to fill.
"Uh, yeah."
"So what's for dinner?"
"Dinner? Oh, well. I've actually been looking at some files,so I haven't cooked anything." Logan looked at her guiltily, but if she was annoyed or upset, she didn't show it.
"Oh, I'll do something. I'm not as good at cooking as you, but I'm sure there's something I can cook."
Max
She had to hand it to them. They'd worked out a pretty good plan. When they reached her bike, she'd nearly laughed. But she'd insisted on driving.
Now they were walking up to Logan's apartment, because Alec had insisted that Logan would want to see she was alright. He was in the middle of telling ehr about the fight with Asha when they swung the door open. Max surveyed the candlelight and wine with a raised eyebrow. Alec was just staring.
"Well - I guess she forgave you, then." It sounded pathetic, cliche even. Alec felt an insane urge to laugh.
"Hey, Max," Asha said, in a cat-that-ate-the-canary voice. Max replied in a frosty little voice, her eyes politely averted from the table.
"Max!" Logan said. "I''ve been worried about you."
"Obviously."
"Come one, I have to tell you something," Logan said, standing up and striding from the room before she could say anything. She followed him with a glance at Alec. Then he understood. She was enjoying all this, making Asha uncomfortable. He winked at her, and when she was gone, took Logan's recently vacated seat. They'd only just sat down, it appeared. He took a mouthful of Logan's pasta, and washed it down with Logan's wine.
"So," he said, with a wide smile, "am I forgiven, too?"
A/N He he. If you want to know what Logan has to tell Max, or, for that matter, what Max is going to say to him, hit the review button!!!
Private corporation, Part Eight.
"Max!" Alec shouted again.
"What are you doing here?" She shouted back. She'd made herself run, following Alec to the perimeter of the property. He jumped a low fence and ducked into a clump of bushes that had conviniently grown wild.
"You asked me to come," Alec said calmly. "You owe me big, but. I nearly got caught twice in there, and I think I've singed my eyebrows."
Max nearly laughed. "You poor thing," she said. "I take it you lit the fire?"
"Who else? Come on," he said quickly as sounds of yelling reached their ears. "You know," he continued as they walked, "you can't just keep disappearing. Maybe you should actually stop and get them what they want, then escape."
"Why would I have any reason to need to escape then?" Max asked.
Alec rolled his eyes. "You don't get it, do you? There not going to say, 'ok, you've done what we asked, now you can go.' They're going to have to get rid of everybody who knows you stole that disk from them. At the moment, they only know of you."
Max was about to protest this, when it hit home that he was probably right. He'd actually grown up at Manticore. He'd have some idea what they would and wouldn't do. Well, maybe grown up wasn't the right phrase, Max reflected wryly. Trained or Hand bred, those might suit.
"So what do you suggest I do?" Max asked. "Throw myself back into the room, try to tie myself up before Michaela gets back and declare that I only exist to do her bidding?"
"No," Alec replied. "I'd say more ring them, get them to meet you somewhere and set down some ground rules. Maybe they won't insist on seeing you 24/7 if you agree to check in by phone everyday."
"Tried that."
"You could drop in the not-so-little fact that you know Eyes Only," Alec said. Max stared at him. "Well, it works. Think about it. He could expose the CIA. Show them up again. Plus," he added with a bit of a grin, "it might take some of the heat off our type of transgenic."
He had a point, Max thought grudgingly. But could she do that? It wouldn't put Logan in danger after all. Or would it?
Logan was sitting in his apartment, worrying over the rescue effort and scanning files on his computer at the same time. He was trying to find out as much as he could about the CIA, in the off-chance it would help Max. Plus it stopped him from stressing too badly.
The phone rang. He prayed it would be Max. He dreaded it would be Alec, telling him the plan had failed. "Hello?"
"I got a message from you," Lydecker said. "What's all this about?"
"Oh, it's you. Well. I don't know all the details myself, but Max said to tell you to lay low for a few days."
"Why?" Lydecker asked. "She's never really cared before."
"What do you know about the CIA?" Logan asked, and was rewarded by dead silence from the other end of the connection. "You still there?"
"Why do you want to know about the CIA?" Lydecker's voice was deceptively calm. "They disbanded in 2006."
"No, they didn't. They became some sort of Private Corporation. Now they run with transgenics. They claim you stole their files to start Manticore."
"That's impossible."
"Which part?" Logan asked. "The fact that they still exist, the fact that they create transgenics, or the fact that you stole their experiments?"
"I don't believe it," Lydecker said, as if to himself. "Yeah, I stole their files. They weren't using them, but I didn't know it was because they didn't work at first. Until I created my first batch of transgenics. So why do i need to worry about them now?"
"They're after Manticore. When it burnt down, they decided they'd have the disk. You know, that one you have."
"Oh. So you want be to be quiet, stay out of the picture and hand over files which could endanger everything I've worked for?"
"Something like that."
"Or not."
"Listen," Logan said, temper beginning to edge his voice. "Everything you worked for was lost when you got the boot. It was then lost to everyone when the damn place burnt down. Right now, giving over the disk would only save Max's life."
"And what do you think the CIA is going to do with it? There's records of evrybody who worked at Manticore, you know. Staff lists. Repairs. Doctors. Directors. Officials."
"And what good will it do them? If anyone who worked there had any brains, they'd either be in another country by now, or lying very low." The familair beep of call waiting broke into the argument. "I have to go," Logan said, and cut the connection. "Jerk."
"Oh, thanks," Asha's voice came through the phone.
"Asha! I didn't mean you. I was on the other line, and..."
"Whatever," Asha broke in. "I was calling to apologise. I was way out of line. I shoultdn't have been spying on you, and I shouldn't have left like that. I should have faced my punishment."
"What punishment?" Logan asked vaguely. He was scannign the computer screen, looking for something that had caught his attentikon for a split second before he lost it."
"Oh, you didn't hear Alec dishing it out to me? Well, anyway. I was wondering if we could have dinner. You know, for an apology. Just as friends," she added quickly. "Are you at home?"
"Um-hmm," Logan replied, reading through the information.
"Cool. I'll be there in about fifteen minutes." Asha hung up and Logan held the dead phone for a few sceonds before hanging it up.
He was reading through the file that had caught his attention, the actual uses for CIA transgenics and their strengths when the door opened. "Hey," he called. "Come on in."
Asha entered the room, carrying a bottle of wine. "Hey," she said. "It's red, hope you don't mind."
"Um, yeah - ok. Listen, Max might be here soon -" Logan begann, but was cut off by Asha's laugh.
"That shouldn't matter. We're only friends, aren't we?" There was a pause, which Logan finally figured out he was meant to fill.
"Uh, yeah."
"So what's for dinner?"
"Dinner? Oh, well. I've actually been looking at some files,so I haven't cooked anything." Logan looked at her guiltily, but if she was annoyed or upset, she didn't show it.
"Oh, I'll do something. I'm not as good at cooking as you, but I'm sure there's something I can cook."
Max
She had to hand it to them. They'd worked out a pretty good plan. When they reached her bike, she'd nearly laughed. But she'd insisted on driving.
Now they were walking up to Logan's apartment, because Alec had insisted that Logan would want to see she was alright. He was in the middle of telling ehr about the fight with Asha when they swung the door open. Max surveyed the candlelight and wine with a raised eyebrow. Alec was just staring.
"Well - I guess she forgave you, then." It sounded pathetic, cliche even. Alec felt an insane urge to laugh.
"Hey, Max," Asha said, in a cat-that-ate-the-canary voice. Max replied in a frosty little voice, her eyes politely averted from the table.
"Max!" Logan said. "I''ve been worried about you."
"Obviously."
"Come one, I have to tell you something," Logan said, standing up and striding from the room before she could say anything. She followed him with a glance at Alec. Then he understood. She was enjoying all this, making Asha uncomfortable. He winked at her, and when she was gone, took Logan's recently vacated seat. They'd only just sat down, it appeared. He took a mouthful of Logan's pasta, and washed it down with Logan's wine.
"So," he said, with a wide smile, "am I forgiven, too?"
A/N He he. If you want to know what Logan has to tell Max, or, for that matter, what Max is going to say to him, hit the review button!!!