Disclaimer: All characters of Dark Angel belong to the creators, writers, and producers of Dark Angel, not to the idiots who cancelled the show and replaced it with firefly. The song lyrics belong to the artists and the writers.
Summary: M/A. We're still in Cuba with Max living the peaceful life at Casa Montalban, she thinks.
A/N: Please R&R. Reviews are what drive me to write since I have confirmation that people are actually reading my work. And they make me work faster. Hate it? Love it? Review!!
I know it's been a really long time since I've posted the last chapter. With school, sports, and my social life it was hard to get any writing done. You may want to glance over the previous chapters to get back into the story.
Getaway to CubaBy Strife's LMNT
Chapter 5
More time passed and I began to make Cuba my second home. Cuba had definitely brought out a different side of me and I was beginning to like it. The kitchen was always a source of spicy smells and engaging conversation.
While learning to cook dishes from Cuba and other parts of the world, I also got a glimpse of life outside of America. Turns out that the situation after the Pulse was different where ever you went. What were once thriving mega-cities had become slums where the wealthy and even the middle-class came few and far between. Cities in Third World countries were somewhat unaffected by the economic down turn. Life went on almost normally.
I told no one of my Manticore past and I heard nothing of any transgenics overseas. I figured as much, I guess we all wanted to stay close to base. Either that, or we were learning how to blend in anywhere. I didn't want to bring it up in case one of my house mates had something against genetically modified human beings.
I thought of home often, but I still didn't think it was time to leave. It had been five weeks since Alec said he was leaving for Seattle. I was beginning to wonder if Alec had really left the country. He had been so intent on sorting his life out when he departed from Seattle. Perhaps he had left Cuba and gone to another foreign country, deciding not to head straight home. With his charm and large savings account, he could be anywhere.
Speaking of Alec, his Latin-look-alike, Andres, was the best land lord anyone could ask for. Despite being a family outcast, he had kept in touch with many of his friends from his previous life. He never told me directly about his potential riches, but I saw signs identical to those in Logan's life.
Andres would often throw impromptu parties at the house with his friends and boarders. But no one felt like a simple boarder at these parties. Everyone mingled and got along with the other party-goers. The music was fast-paced and full of international flavour. The clothing worn by both men and women were extravagant to say the least. There was no need to worry about waking the neighbours, since they all were invited to the parties as well. Sometimes the party spanned quite a few lavish house holds in the area.
The only way to describe the parties would be to refer to one of Hugh Hefner's Playboy "Midsummer Night's Dream" parties. Everyone let go of their inhibitions and danced until the early dawn when we would scrounge up enough wine and food to have an early morning buffet.
Those parties were definitely the best part of living in the villa. That and the fact that I seemed to be Andres' VIP at the moment. According to old friends, he had once been quite the playboy and they were surprised that I was able to keep him on such a short leash. I never forgot Alec, but Andres was certainly making it hard to stay so focused.
With all the activities of this fantasy world surrounding me, it was hard to realize I had a lot of issues to work out within myself. There had to be some reason for all the things that have happened so far. My struggles with the government weren't merely by chance. I also realized how much I yearned for a normal family setting. Seeing my twin, Sam, with her husband and son made me realize that a normal life for a transgenic was possible. But was it possible for me? Being the perfect transgenic, a fugitive and being connected with Eyes Only, was it too much for me to handle?
For the next few days, similar thoughts ran through my head until they overcame my whole body. I buried myself in work hoping to drown out the new voices in my head that whispered to me throughout the day. The others began to notice my strange behaviour, but I guess they saw it as a bout of homesickness.
One morning, while working in the backyard, I heard the sound of a car pulling into the driveway. Besides Andres, no one else in the house owned a car and this was not the familiar sound of Andres' pick-up truck. Two car doors slammed and I knew that two men were approaching the front door. Telling myself not to be so paranoid, I resumed trimming an overgrown bush. But my attention was drawn to the front entrance to where I could hear the two men and Andres. Curious, I walked up to the side gate where I could get a glimpse of the visitors. Unfortunately, even with my superior hearing, I couldn't hear a word they said.
"Are you sure the area is secure? There's no one else here?" The first man, short, bald, chubby and with a thick moustache spoke with a bit of fear in his voice.
"Just one of my renters, but she's out in the back. Can't hear a thing. Carlos, you needn't worry."
"Is she the one we're looking for?" The second man, tall, muscular, with long wavy hair and a dark goatee, eyed the entrance and surrounding area with suspicion.
"Yes, Jorge, she's the one."
"Are you sure? These freaks, they look just like any other human being. Perhaps, that's why they're so hard to find."
"Perhaps." Andres stifled a laugh, since he thought that Jorge had to be one of the stupidest men he had ever done business with. "I assure you, she is one of those Manticore creations. I've seen the barcode with my own eyes."
"We believe you. But how are we to capture this…this creature?"
"It's up to you. She'll do anything I'll tell her to do. Perhaps, I can take her on a little trip to my cabin in the mountains?"
"Good, good. We'll make the exchange there. She'll make us a good amount of money when we sell her back to the American government. Don't worry, Senor Montalban, you'll get what you deserve."
"I have no doubt of that."
With a final handshake, the two officious-looking men got back in their car and drove off. Meanwhile, Max had given up on trying to listen in on the conversation. She went on trimming the bush and scolding herself for being so suspicious of the littlest of things.
3 days later…
"Max!?" Andres yelled from the lower floor.
"What!?"
"Are you ready? We have to leave soon."
"Alright, alright. I'm ready!" I came bounding down the stairs with a small overnight bag in my hand.
Andres eyed the miniscule black duffel bag that I held. "You obviously weren't packing. What took you so long?"
"I just finished some overdue postcards for my friends back home. Can we pass by the post office on our way out?"
"Yes, yes. But we have to leave, now."
I was a bit shocked by Andres' short temper. He was usually so easy-going. I was the one who was doing him a favour by going to his mountain cabin to help clean it up. Andres was planning to sell it and he needed some help getting it ready for any potential buyers. He told me that everyone else in the house was busy, so I would be the only one going on the weekend trip.
Being the overly paranoid person that I was, I had written postcards to Original Cindy, Alec and even Logan. They contained info on where I was headed and when I should be writing to them again. If they didn't receive a second postcard soon, they would know something was wrong.
Knowing that I was probably worrying about nothing. I relaxed and took in the changing scenery. It started as a sprawling city filled with cards and people to a dusty, dirt road winding through a dense rain forest.
When we arrived after a two-hour drive, I was surprised to see that the cabin wasn't really a cabin after all, it was more like a mountain-top mansion. It was as large the villa back in the city and it was the only building in sight. Not wanting to waste any time, Andres got me dusting and arranging furniture while he fixed up some of the broken floor boards. We had grown close, but obviously not close enough to keep me away from the work.
It was late afternoon when I heard the sound of 4 vehicles coming into the driveway. Two Hummers and two Range Rovers, all black. Then out of each car came 4 people. All men, all about 6 feet tall, wearing heavy body armour and carrying heavy artillery. My instincts had been right, this was a set-up and Andres knew all about it. Grabbing my bag and hefting it over my shoulder, I searched for the nearest exit. I could hear the heavy foot steps coming from both the front and back entrances.
I went into a nearby room and found that it was a bathroom. Luckily, the window was not locked and it was big enough to crawl through. Once outside the building, I jumped up the side wall and onto the roof. From there, I saw the house was surrounded by the sixteen men. I could also see Andres standing by the front gate, looking pleased with himself. Fighting strong impulses to kill Andres, I gathered my wits about me and leapt from the roof to the top of one of the Hummers in one single, silent bound. Without catching Andres' attention, I crawled through the open window and into the driver's seat. Whoever these people were, they weren't too bright. Along with stashes of cash, road maps, cell phones, and extra guns, they had left the keys in the Hummer.
With one thunderous roar from the gigantic engine, I put the pedal to the metal and took a short cut into the jungle. The path I took wasn't too steep but it was dense with jungle plants. As I headed straight down the mountain, I made sure to stay away from the main road where I knew other mysterious men in black would be waiting in some kind of makeshift road block.
The powerful vehicle made my getaway quick and easy. The thick underbrush came crashing down almost at the sight of my coming. Branches snapped as they hit the front grill and the tires easily rolled over them like matchsticks. The birds and other animals that had been sitting peacefully now flew and scurried away in retreat, their homes now decimated. Note to self: donate some money to the Rainforest Fund as soon as you get home.
To my surprise, I heard a second Hummer engine in the distance, but it was definitely gaining ground on my own vehicle. Within a few minutes, I saw the huge black vehicle in my rear view mirror. At least someone had been smart enough to follow my destructive path down the mountain. But that wasn't the only thing that surprised me. When I glanced into the driver's seat, I could see the unique smirk that I knew belonged to Andres.
Yelling at the top of my lungs, I hoped Andres would be able to hear me. "You set me up! You bastard!"
"Max, please let me explain!!"
"Save your breath. I'm not interested."
"Max, I swear I didn't know they would do this. Let me make it up to you!"
Whoever this guy really was, he was quite the actor. He actually had a sincere and regretful look upon his face. Kind of like a puppy dog who's made a mess all over your carpet and he knows he's going to be in a lot of trouble. He was right, he was going to be in a lot of trouble.
"Really? You want ME to forgive YOU?"
"Yes! I'll do anything. Please come back with me!"
At this point in our conversation, our Hummers were almost side by side which made it easier to talk despite our high speed chase in the jungle. Taking a listen to my surroundings, I could hear the roar of moving water.
"Alright." I said to myself as I slammed hard on my brakes and watched the 2nd Hummer shoot past me.
"Mmaaaaaxxx!"
The Andres' Hummer didn't stop in time to keep itself from shooting off the side of a deep canyon in the middle of the jungle. The Hummer splashed head first into the white-water rapids after taking a 100-foot free fall from where I had stopped. Never being one to be into murder, I laughed as I saw Andres swim to the river's edge seemingly unhurt. The 4 x 4 bobbed a little before it made its way to the monstrous waterfall. I couldn't help but smile as I saw the Hummer bob along with the current and with one final dramatic pause, tumble over with the force of the waterfall.
I revved my engine and got out of the jungle and onto the main road.
"Adios, Andres."
Used to sit and wonder
Would I ever be happy?
Life was so bittersweet
So many disappointments
Too many ups and downs for me
When you live a nightmare
It's hard to dream
But sometimes life just isn't fair
So why complain? Nobody cares
And I don't waste nobody's time
So I'm…
I'm about to change my vibe
Today the sun's gonna shine
'Cause I made up my mind
That today will be the start of better days
Leavin' all shit behind
And move on with my life
The blindfold's off my eyes
And now all I see for me is better days
Afraid of my reflection
Tell me that's not me I see
But soon I won't let that be me
Stuck somewhere in the middle
I'm half full or half empty
Before someone could come and rescue me
Can't let that petty attitude
Start to jade my point of view
Only thing that does is bring me down
So I'm…
I'm about to change my vibe
Today the sun's gonna shine
'Cause I made up my mind
That today will be the start of better days
Leavin' all shit behind
And move on with my life
The blindfold's off my eyes
And now all I see for me is better days
Hurt so many times before
I used to cry but not anymore
Just let it go and life can feel
So good
Stop living the blues
Can't let this petty attitude
Start to jade my point of view
Only thing it does is bring me down
So I'm…
I'm about to change my vibe
Today the sun's gonna shine
'Cause I made up my mind
That today will be the start of better days
Leavin' all shit behind
And move on with my life
The blindfold's off my eyes
And now all I see for me is better days
A/N: the end of another chapter. There's still more to come if you want it. Don't worry, Alec is still in the picture. Review!! And the next chapter will come faster!! P.S. If you have any ideas, just post them in your review!