Here's a season two alternate timeline piece. Max and Logan have gone their separate ways but the loss and loneliness gets to her and she finds herself knocking on his door only to discover that he has been missing for over a year.
I hope to get some reviews and I thank Beth, Angel and DarkieX for reviewing Fallen Hero. I would also like to say to one person in particular that I don't care if you hate Logan. I write what I want to write and no threats will change that.
As always, I hope many of you will read and review. I will accept any reviews but I will not acknowledge any personal attacks on my chosen pairings. I write Max and Logan stories and nothing will change that.
Enjoy…
Loss and Loneliness
"What is it, Boo?" Original Cindy asked her favorite girl in the whole world. "What's wrong witchu today?"
Max sat staring out the window. Her eyes burning with the tears she was forcing away. Her soul in turmoil over the decision she had no choice in making. Her mind inches away from snapping into something terribly wrong for the woman she had become because of a man. 'The only man.' She thought. He was the only man for her as far as she was concerned. She stared ahead. She ignored OC and she hated herself for it, but she knew that if she opened her mouth and uttered so much as one word, the gates would open and she would lose it again.
The decision had been hers and she was left with no choice. She had been lucky that Joshua was there. She had been careless and only Joshua was capable of saving him. Only Joshua...
"Not me..." She muttered.
"Not you what" OC asked.
"Nothing. Leave me alone." She said. Then realized, adding. "Please? I can't." She left it at that wishing it was the bullet with her name on it.
"You did the right thing. It was the only way to protect him." OC said. Her words were not meant to hurt. They were not meant to bring more pain but they had that effect anyway. Max tried to control it. She stood up and headed for the bedroom. "Max!"
"WHAT!?!" Max yelled. Her rage was unbalanced and she could see the fear in Cindy's eyes. She knew she would never hurt Cindy, not intentionally, but she had never seen this fear before. "WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME? What should I do? They won Cindy! Manticore won. They took him away from me just like they said they would. They made it so that we couldn't be. They ruined the most perfect thing I have ever known. All I have left now is Manticore and I pressed the button. Now, not even they are left. They got what they wanted. That bitch told me they would get this eventually and I have nothing left now."
"You have me. You're my best friend."
"I'm sorry." Max said. She turned and left. "Without him, nothing matters." Cindy could hear the words faintly from the hall. For the first time since she and Max had met, Original Cindy cried. She knew Max didn't mean it. Not the way she said it. She knew...
Max wandered through the streets looking for anything that would hold her interest. There was a chicken for sale in the market and she smiled at the thought of Logan forgetting to turn on the oven. It could have been perfect but of course Zach was in trouble and she had to help Zach, right. She turned the corner and an old beat up Aztec drove by making a strange noise. Max knew it was a transmission problem. She looked closely at the driver already knowing it wasn't Logan. It was a woman and two small children. Not Logan.
Another block and she stood peering down the alley where she met Phil. She smiled. Pierpont Lempkin and the Taliban and the microchip and... And... The thought hit her like a brick smashing over her head. Rafer. Rage hit her again and then the tears and she turned into the alley so that no one could see her cry again. There was the back door to Crash in the distance and the people standing there seemed happy. Sketchy was talking to a little honey he had no chance with but he was drunk and Max knew he didn't care. Max turned away again, her thoughts turning to The High Place.
'My god.' She thought. 'When was the last time I went up there? When was the last time I needed, wanted to go up there?' She found herself heading in the direction of the needle. The high-rise district was close. She would see Fogle Towers. Would his apartment be lit up? No. It was never lit up. It was always so warm and inviting and the lights were quiet and convincing of the warmth that existed inside. It had been perfect until she had been turned into the vehicle of his destruction. Another reminder and another tear and she hated herself. 'What have I done?' She thought as she approached the needle.
Sitting on top peering into the dark night, Max shut her mind off. It was the only way to not think about him. She wanted to tell OC she was sorry, but she didn't believe she deserved forgiveness. There had been no reason to snap like that, but the soldier inside had broken. Without him, nothing really mattered.
She should have told OC why this day was hitting her so hard. She should have told her what this day was. Three years now to the day since Max broke into Fogle Towers. Three years ago today, Max met the man of her dreams. The perfect man. A beautiful talented man. A great man with goals far bigger than himself and he held the will to see those goals to their ends no matter the cost.
"Third times the charm you rat-bastard-sons-of-bitches." She shouted over the city. "Three times I almost did your bidding." She said loud over the city. "Three times, you almost won... but you didn't and all it cost me was everything." She whispered more to herself than to anyone, realizing for the first time that she had lost, just lost when she walked away from Logan.
'I didn't have a choice, right? It was the only way, right?' She asked not really caring that she was staring into the sky. "I had to leave, right?" She asked the blue lady. "You were all we had. You protected us. I know that now. You gave us the power to make the decision. You watched over us just like Ben said you would and I killed him. Logan watched over me. Tried to protect me and I almost killed him, too." She said. The tears came again. The rain came as well. Hard and biting and cold and for the first time that she could remember, Max shivered. "I did the right thing, right?" She asked anyone who would listen and as the lightning sparked and danced across the vile night sky, thunder shattered her prayer and she broke. She quit. She gave up and let the tears flow.
She didn't know when it happened. She wasn't sure how she got there really. She didn't have any gear but when the elevator doors opened and she found herself standing outside of Logan's door, she was not surprised that she should find herself here on this night. It was an anniversary of sorts and he remembered the last one. It would be fitting that she should remember this one. Would he be happy to see her? Would he be mad, angry or nonchalant? Would he be home and who would he be with? A beautiful woman, perhaps? The dinner laid exquisitely on a fine table. The music perfect. Candles and calm scents? She cursed herself when she realized her hand was knocking on the door. She turned to run, but nothing happened.
She waited.
She knocked again.
She waited some more.
She knocked again. This time the knock was louder. This time there was no way it could not be heard. 'Sleeping?' She thought turning to leave. 'I shouldn't bother him.' Then she watched, actually watched her own hand as it dug the small metal tools from the hidden flap behind the heavy pocket and she realized just how powerless she was to stop the lock from being picked.
The door opened silently and Max stepped into the dusty, musty smelling apartment. There was no power and from what she could see the place hadn't been lived in for quite some time. She moved throughout and found nothing that would lead her to believe that someone actually lived here. She headed out toward the kitchen. The fridge was empty and the stove had no gas or electric. The apartment was deserted. Her mind raced over the last year. She hadn't heard one single Eyes Only broadcast since the Dougie and Mia incident when Mia told her everything would be all right. She ran over her absolutely perfect memory. There had been no Eyes Only broadcasts in the last thirteen months.
Her feet found their way into the bedroom. It was cluttered with old clothes abandoned and left behind. There in the corner was her favorite turtleneck. The one she wore when her own clothes were being washed. She loved that shirt. It had smelled so... Well, Logan. Now it was crumpled and covered with dust in a dark corner left apparently with all the other unwanted things Logan had left here.
The apartment was taking on a frantic feeling as Max rushed into the office and looked at the computer equipment. It was all still there. It was untouched except for the main unit. The hard drives were missing. She searched the equipment and looked for anything that would tell her The Informant Net was safe but her hopes for that even were dashed, as she could find no evidence that Logan had taken the drives. Eyes Only was no more. It was as if she had killed him anyway.
It didn't matter that she didn't pull the trigger that blew out his spine. It didn't matter that her very existence was a hindrance and a danger to his very being. It didn't matter that she put his life in jeopardy every time he saved her from the bad guys. It didn't matter that it had worked both ways. The only thought she could find was one of blame. This here. This apartment and Logan's disappearance, the end of Eyes Only and The Informant Net. This was her fault. This was her doing.
"I did destroy you, Logan." Max said out loud. "I did it this time. I really did it this time."
There were no more tears. There was only the misery she had kept locked inside of herself all those years after the escape. There was only the darkness surrounding her. Her moves didn't matter anymore. Nothing mattered anymore. She had failed the only person that ever believed in her. She had done it. She had spoken the words and she had made the choice and she walked away from him and only now did she understand the consequence of those decisions. It had all been her fault. She knew this and had no choice. She had to accept it.
"I'm sorry." She muttered as if someone could hear, as if someone cared. "I'm sorry." She whispered.
When the book fell from the shelf, she looked over to the floor. It was his journal. The book he protected and had hidden. It was his secret guarded side. It was HIM.
She picked it up. Her body was functioning on its own. Her hands pulled the sheet of paper from the front sleeve and opened it. Her eyes poured over every word and her brain logged those words, burned them into her memory for all time. Logan spoke them out loud as her eyes read them. Her mind raced at the information contained in those few words. Her body shook with emotion she had not felt in a year. Her heart raced. Her mind followed.
Max
Above all else, know that I Love you.
I will fix this. I will find a way, no matter
the cost. I will not lose you. I don't
care what 'they' think or know or want. I
will find a way and I will not stop until I do.
I will not fail you.
Always Yours, My Angel
Logan
She felt the tears again. She thought they had run out. She thought there were no more. She had been right. There were no more sorrow filled tears to shed.
Just as quickly as the happiness had come the happiness left again. The paper was yellowing and the pages in the book were crispy. 'I ran away. I left you.' She felt the thoughts moving through her. 'I failed you and you still love me. I truly am not worthy.' And still another time that night, Max found her body moving on instinct when she realized she was running through sector 9 heading back to her place in sector five. She made the trip by foot in record time only to find Cindy and Sketchy sitting in the living room talking.
"Max?" OC called as she burst into the room and headed for her bedroom. "Max, what the hell?"
"It's Logan!" She shouted. "He Loves me. He left me a note." She said not making any sense to the three in the room. "I'm moving out, going to live in the penthouse. You can have this place. I have to get my stuff. I'll be back tomorrow for the rest of it." Max said rushing around her place trying to get a handle on some things and pack a few bags to take over with her.
"You're moving in with Logan?" OC asked.
"He doesn't live there."
"What do you mean?" Sketchy asked.
"He moved out or he's gone or maybe he's dead. NO. He's not dead. I would know. I don't know, but he left me a note a long time ago expecting me to show up, but I didn't until tonight. Tonight's our anniversary and he still loves me even after what I did."
"You're babbling. You know this right?" OC said to her best friend. "I want you to stop and breathe and then tell me what is going on."
Max stopped and looked at Original Cindy. She took a deep breath and handed the note to Cindy. OC read it and handed it to Sketchy. "If he wrote that over a year ago..." OC started, but Max cut her off.
"I was depressed because this is the night I broke into Logan's place to steal Bast."
"Bast?" Sketchy asked.
"Bast. The Egyptian Goddess that comprehends all Goddesses. Eye of Ra, protector, avenger, destroyer. I tried to steal it from Logan one night. It's how we met. I had never met a man like Logan before and it happened tonight three years ago. It's our anniversary. I found myself standing outside his door so I thought I would see him, you know and see if maybe, just maybe..." Max stopped not wanting to bring up everything about Manticore in front of Sketchy but he was more interested in how Max and Logan met.
"You mean you were a thief and you tried to rob Logan and instead you two started dating?" OC asked.
"Something like that."
OC said. "Get to the note. He's not there?"
"No." Max said.
"Where is he?"
"I don't know. I'm going to find out though. I have to." Max said.
"How?"
"All his stuff is still there. He still owns the place. He will come back. What if he needs my help. What if he's in trouble? What if he was captured like Lydecker? What if White got to him? What if he found a cure but can't get to me?" Max said.
"What if it's a trap and the bad guys have him? What if they are waiting for you? What if White killed him and is watching? What if, is a huge question, Max." OC said.
"I'm getting the feeling that something much deeper is going on here than either of you two are letting me in on. I am confused at times and not so smart, but I can figure out a thing or two." Sketchy said.
"What are you trying to say?" Max asked.
"Spit it out, fool." OC said.
"How can I help?" Sketchy asked.
Max was back at Logan's within the hour. She had brought candles from her place and broken into Logan's stash in his hall closet. She started making mental notes about things that had to be done. Some things had to be taken care of almost immediately like power for light and cooking and the basic necessities which she had the money for. The computers were almost entirely intact and she could get what she needed from the street so that wouldn't be a problem but the main situation she had to deal with was the living arrangements she had just helped herself to. She didn't for a second believe that Logan would care that she had moved in, but there were neighbors that had been used to Logan even if he was a little reclusive. What would they think if she was suddenly living here? Would they even notice? Would they care?
Max worked around the place cleaning and straightening until mid morning. She had been ignoring her pager all morning knowing it was Normal looking for her. Around ten she was sitting quietly on a better smelling couch staring at the fifteen garbage bags of dusty towels and other assorted junk she had found scattered around. All of Logan's clothes were neatly hung in the huge closet and there was more than enough room for her stuff when she finally got it moved to the new place. The kitchen was clean and the shelves were neatly arranged. It had taken all night but she was sure that Logan wouldn't complain.
She finally picked up the phone and called into work.
"Normal. This is Max. I may come back to work, but I am not sure yet. Don't get your hopes up. I'll call you if I need you." Max said to him before hanging up. She didn't wait for a response. She then headed out the door to have power reconnected and to do a little digging. She needed to start working on finding the information she needed. She needed to find Logan and apologize for her mistakes.
"And they were my mistakes, all along." Max said looking at the picture of Logan she had taken from his place once. The one she kept on her dresser in her bedroom right beside the statue of Bast he had repurchased for her. "I won't let you down either." She said. "I will find you. You gave me a chance and you protected me. You did everything for me and I failed you. I will never do that again." She said. She walked over to the table in the hall where Logan had originally kept Bast and placed it back on the now clean podium where it belonged.
Six days passed. Max had spent most of her time working computer searches or gathering her stuff with Sketchy's help. When the knock sounded on the door late that first Monday in her new apartment, Max opened it figuring it was Sketchy with the last of her stuff. It wasn't.
"Good afternoon, Miss. I would like to talk to you about your new apartment if I may?" The man said. He was wearing a good suit standing tall in the door.
"Who are you?" She asked.
"I represent parties with interest in this apartment. I have been coming by here for the last ten months. I have answers to some of your questions and some packages that you will be interested in. I will not take much of your time and I hope you can bear with me because I have never quite dealt with this type of a situation before. I am unsure of how to proceed." The man said with a nod of his head trying to let Max know he wanted to come in.
Max could tell she had numerous advantages over this man so she stepped aside reluctantly letting him into the main hall. She gestured toward the kitchen and offered him a drink. He asked for water. She handed him a glass and watched with marginal patience as he pulled three packages out of his briefcase before looking to her with a smile.
"This first package is for your eyes only and was left with the strictest of rules as to its handling. I was here last Monday and noticed that you had finally moved in so I took the liberty of having this pulled out of the safe location it had been stored in." He set the package in front of her with a dull thud. It was obviously heavier than the others.
"This second package is the information a certain gentleman of your acquaintance has left for you in case a situation such as has occurred came to pass. I believe this package lists all bank accounts and billing information for the upkeep of the apartment and for your own personal use." He said.
"Who is this gentleman?" Max asked.
"I was told you would have this information. I was told you would be the only one here. You are Max Guevara. I have a picture here for identification purposes only. You are the woman in the picture." He said holding a picture of Max in her Rafael Banks gown from Bennett and Marianne's Wedding. Max smiled. He returned the picture to her.
"What gentleman gave you this stuff?"
"I do not know his name. I was told by him that you were to have these three packages delivered upon your arrival. I am merely fulfilling the contract I was hired to complete and when I leave today, it is my understanding that you will have control of this apartment and the entity or entities it represents. This is all yours now."
"How do I get in touch with this gentleman?" Max asked almost demanding.
"I do not know. I only met with him once."
"Describe him." Max said.
"It was over a year ago. I am afraid my memory isn't that good. He had glasses and a good build. He was very scholarly with a commanding presence, quite in control of everything around him. I do not remember much else." He said.
"Thanks." Max said sounding disappointed as if hoping Logan would walk through the door at any moment. "Please continue." She said.
"This last package is a key to a safety deposit box in San Francisco. It has been locked in this small box inside of the small box. I am told you have the key to this box so you may retrieve the key. The information for the actual location of the safety deposit box is contained inside with the key." The man explained. "It is quite a mystery isn't it?" His curiosity was apparent.
"Do you know where I can find this man? Do you know anyone who can help me find the man that gave you this stuff?" Max asked.
"I do not." He said. "My job is done. I must leave now. I wish I could tell you his whereabouts, but I got the distinct feeling that he was in hiding for some reason. It is my belief that he was being hunted by the government. I have no proof of this, but I have an intuition about these things. I hope there is a happy ending in all of this." He said and with a nod of his head, the man turned and left.
"I hope so, too." Max muttered after him. She followed him to the door and closed it, locking it before turning back to the kitchen.
Max cracked the first package she had been given and pulled two hard discs and a note out of it. The note had instructions for installation on one side and codes on the other. There was nothing else in the package. She set the drives aside and opened the second package. Inside were several credit cards and account cards from numerous banks. They all contained her name. A stapled series of papers listed the type and balance of each account. The five different credit cards all had unlimited credit from overseas banks where the money seemed to exist in abundance. Logan had regained some of his former wealth and now left it to Max. She read each and every piece of paper looking for some clues about his location but there was none. After an hour of reading, she set everything aside and opened the small box that contained the key.
She found a smaller box with a very intricate lock inside of it. It took a few seconds to open it and when she did, she found the note and the key to Logan's safety deposit box. Picking up the hard drives, Max headed into the office to install them and fire up the computers to start her search for Logan.
Twenty minutes later, she was watching a video recorded by Logan.
"Hello Max." He said. His voice was strained and empty. "I know since you are watching this that I am gone and you are living in the penthouse. I always wanted you to live there, but I had always foreseen us living there together." He paused for a second and held up the picture of Max he kept on his desk. Looking at it, Max could see how much he cared for her. She reached out to touch his face on the screen. "I don't know why you chose the reasons you did, but I have to admit it gave me the opportunity to accomplish some things I might not otherwise have accomplished. I leave for Japan in the morning. On my shelves is my journal. In it I have left you the poetry you asked to read. I hope it reminds you of better times." He paused. He looked toward the shelf as if waiting for Max to get the diary.
"Anyway, in Japan, I will have a surgery and some injections of nanocytes to help reconstruct my spinal cord and should be walking in a few weeks without the aid of the exo-skeleton. I will have to undergo some extensive rehab on my legs, but I don't know where they are going to send me for that so I will probably be gone for a year or more at this point. I have all the information on your virus. I hacked it from the CDC and removed your records but they did have hard copy of the files. If I can manage it, I will get that as well although I do not know how I will accomplish this just yet. Surgery first and Virus second. You have been wiped from the CDC records so hopefully, they will forget about the hard copy.
"I want you to know one thing. I know we parted ways in a fashion that should not have happened. I hold nothing against you for what you said or what you did. I am as much at fault in this matter as you are. Probably more so since I waged the war against Manticore in the first place when I thought you had died. I really pissed them off on that one, eh? What I am trying to say is that I fully intend to return home one day. I hope you are there when I arrive." Logan leaned in close to the camera, closer to Max. "I Love you. I have always I will always Love you. Don't ever forget that. Know it to be the only truth that keeps me alive and fighting for the day I can return to you and hold you in my arms. I know this day is coming. I Love you, Max."
She was tearing up again, but a knock on the door stopped her. For a split second, she had the strange thought that it was Logan and his impeccable timing, but she could hear Sketchy and OC on the other side of the door.
"Hey." She said.
"You look like you were expecting someone else." OC said.
"Logan. Silly, huh?" Max said.
"No, Boo. It's always good to have hope. To believe in something."
"Is this all?" Max asked.
"This is the last of it and I took the opportunity to order pizza. I figured you could fill us in on some of the details of your search for Logan. I have been telling some of the people I have met through the paper that I have some knowledge of a missing person of some import and that I would like them to keep their eyes and ears peeled." Sketchy said.
"Logan isn't that easy to track down, but thanks." Max said. "I know Logan would have covered his tracks perfectly and it will take some time to track down a clue let alone Logan himself."
"You talk like he's Eyes Only or something. The people I work with are some of the best in the business. If anyone can uncover information they will." Sketchy said walking toward the bedroom to throw the two large bags of clothes on Max's bed. OC and Max just looked at each other. Sketchy was oblivious. Max spoke first.
"He left a video message for me. He went to Japan to undergo a reconstructive surgery on his spinal cord. He also told me he removed my files from the CDC." She said. "They had hard copy but he couldn't get to it."
"How does he think he can get hard copy from the CDC?"
"I don't know. I was his legs for over a year."
"Do you really think he would have asked you to go into CDC headquarters and try to find your information?" Original Cindy asked. "Why would Logan go to Japan for surgery on his spine and not tell you?"
"No. He had diagrams of the main offices and underground floors and I know he hacks security systems on a whim just to look around. I think he was planning the assault himself." Max said. "As for Japan, I can only assume he had intended to surprise me when it was over. I have to assume something went wrong. It's been over a year since we…" She dropped the thought like a brick but OC understood.
"He was going to break in himself?" OC said, whistling her disbelief. She changed the subject.
"No. I think he was going to forge passes posing as a doctor and hack his way through security into records. He had a live link to the camera on that hall..."
"What camera?" Sketchy asked.
"Logan's camera." Max said.
"He took his camera with him." OC said helping Max cover.
"That is strange why?" Sketchy asked.
"It's not really strange; I was just hoping that Logan had left it behind so that I might see what he had been taking pictures of. Clues, you know."
"Right. We'll find him Max. I promise. Anyway, your clothes are spread out on the bed. Sorry about looking at your things, but I need my duffel bags back." Sketchy explained as he dropped the bags by the front door. He jumped when someone knocked, but it was just the pizza.
After some pizza and some soda, OC and Sketchy left heading out for the evening. Max went back to the computers and started doing some research on Logan's files trying to make sense of the strange filing system he used.
Three days passed before Max found even one item resembling a clue. She had been perusing some files of a medical nature when she came across a folder labeled "Tanaka" and having knowledge of the name she opened it to explore the contents. Inside was a list of Doctor's that had worked with or for Dr. Tanaka with his gene re-sequencing techniques. Most of these people had little keynotes registering them as missing or unavailable except for one. A doctor in Japan named Aiko Kitigari. There was a contact number so Max hacked a signal and placed the call.
"Konnichiwa." It was a woman's voice.
"Hello. I'm calling from the United States. Do you speak English?" Max asked.
"I do. Can I help you?" Asked the woman.
"I am trying to reach Dr. Aiko Kitigari."
"It is Kotogiri." The woman corrected her. "She is in conference now. May I take Message?"
"I am looking for a missing person. His name is Logan Cale and it is urgent that I speak with the doctor. She may have been the last person to have contact with him." Max explained. It was a chance, but she had no choice. The woman on the other end muffled the mouthpiece and spoke in her native tongue to someone standing there. There was an argument and some slight yelling and then another woman spoke to Max.
"This is Doctor Kotogiri. I understand you are looking for a patient of mine?"
"Yes. He is missing and the only lead we have is you. If there is any information you could give me... I know he came to you for surgery and I know that such information is confidential, but I really just need to know two things."
"What two things?" The Doctor asked.
"Was the surgery a success and do you know where he went after the surgery?"
"Who is this?"
"I'm a..." She hesitated. Max wanted to say they were engaged or married or at least that she was his girlfriend, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. "I'm a friend. I am trying to find him."
"Is this Max?" The Doctor asked. Max was silent. After a few seconds the Doctor spoke again. "I'll assume your silence is an affirmation. He spoke of you often. He told me I could expect to hear from you but I expected this call much sooner."
"So you've seen him recently?" Max asked.
"I cannot tell you what you want to know. I had begun treatments with nanocytes to rebuild his spinal cord and to help control the stem cells his body was producing but incapable of using. We worked for three weeks to control that situation, but before I could complete the therapy and begin the surgery, some soldiers came and took him away. I have spent the last year rebuilding my offices and trying to regain customers. I am sorry." The Doctor said.
"What soldiers?"
"I don't know. Some American and some French troops I think. I am not sure. His treatments were progressing quite well, but he didn't get to finish them. This could be good or bad depending on what they did to him after they took him. I am sorry, but I can say no more." The doctor hung up the phone.
"Thank you, Doc." Max said, but the line was already buzzing.
Max made some notes in the file and closed the windows. She searched Logan's files for any instances of French and American troops but could find nothing. 'Why would French troops be looking for you?' She asked the picture of Logan she kept in front of his picture of her. 'Why would American and French troops be looking for you together?'
Max woke after a short sleep and decided to head into work to see OC and the gang. She had some shopping to do and wanted to talk to OC.
"Any news?" OC asked as Max headed into Jam Pony headquarters.
"And you are here, why?" Normal barked at her as she walked past him to talk with her friend.
"Leave us alone, Normal." OC snapped back and Normal wandered off. Max waited for him to leave.
"Logan was in Japan for treatment with nanocytes..."
"Nanny-whats?" OC asked.
"Nano-cytes." Max explained. "Microscopic machines programmed to do whatever is needed to repair the body. Logan was receiving treatments but some soldiers got the hospital in Japan where he was and took him away."
"Soldiers?" OC asked. "You mean your whole year has been relatively quiet because the black choppers have been after Logan?"
"It seems so. The weird thing is that Logan was taken by French and American troops. I can find no knowledge of French troops or even a French connection to Manticore in Logan's database."
"What are you going to do?" OC asked.
"I'm going shopping. I was hoping we could meet for lunch." Max said. She offered to pay for it.
"Count me in." OC said. She and Max hugged and Max headed out. Normal was watching closely. As soon as she was out the door, he was on the phone to someone. She stopped just outside the door to talk with Sketchy for a minute or two before going about her day. Her hearing picked up on Normal's conversation.
"Yes. She was just here... Something about getting lunch with one of my other messengers... I don't know where... She just left... Been gone about five minutes now... Follow the black girl leaving soon, she's meeting Max for lunch... Just trying to be a good citizen..." Normal's conversation ended and Max smiled at Sketchy as she walked away in mid sentence.
'So Normal's turned me in to someone or someone is using Normal to keep tabs on me. I'm going to have to keep an eye on him and find out who it is.' Max thought as she walked downtown toward the market. She would turn the tables and follow OC to see who was trailing the Nubian.
Max headed around the block to the rear of the small warehouse and climbed to the rooftop. She was squatting in the shade of a small rooftop access when two hover-drones moved into view and headed off in a crisscross pattern following OC on her morning deliveries. Max jumped to another roof to see which way OC headed.
She approached the edge of the building in time to see a black van pull to a screeching halt in front of OC. Two men jumped out and fired on the hover drones while a third slightly smaller but still muscular man grabbed OC and her bike and pulled her in the van. They were all wearing masks. Max panicked but was not close enough to make any difference in the abduction so she logged the license plate and hurried back to the penthouse to run a trace. She already knew there would be no information on the van and that it would probably come up as stolen.
An hour later, her fears had been justified and she was lost as to where to start looking for OC. The van had been stolen, but the registration was from LA and not from anywhere around Seattle. Max started slipping into the darkness that so often crept up on her when she didn't have a clue about how to proceed. 'What would Logan do?' She asked herself. 'He would try to analyze the situation. Think of scenarios, but scenarios for what?' She cursed herself for having left Logan in the first place. She picked up his picture and stared at it.
"I should never have left you. I should have believed we could find a way out of this. I should have..." Her revelations were cut off by a ringing phone. She let the answering machine pick it up.
"Max, it's Sketchy." Said the voice so Max answered.
"Sketchy..."
"Max. I know where they took OC. She called and told me the guys that took her want to meet with you. You are to meet them at fifth and Carlson in twenty minutes. There is a payphone. You will be contacted by phone with further instructions." Sketchy said, hanging up the phone before Max could ask any questions. Max was out the door and off on her baby in less than two minutes.