The Moon is Not Enough by ThePekingNoodle
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Chapter Sixteen: The Honeymoon's Over
In which our hero and heroine say goodbye to the vineyard and are back into the thick of things…
Max and Logan spent the rest of the afternoon riding the horses around the vineyards. They returned to the guesthouse in time to shower and dress for dinner with their hosts. The dinner went late, as Don and his wife were anxious to show their appreciation for the help Max and Logan had given them with the Gallo cartel. They finally left the main house, with an open invitation to return to the vineyards anytime they wished, and a promise that they would stay in touch.
When they returned to the guesthouse, Logan built a fire and they sat and sipped after dinner liqueur in comfortable silence for a long time. Max was feeling drowsy from a combination of the day's activities, the warmth of the fire, and the alcohol, and she let her head drop onto Logan's shoulder.
"You're purring," he chuckled after a few minutes.
Max opened an eye; "I am not."
"Yes, you are." Logan placed a light hand on her chest. "I can feel the vibrations. You know I've always liked cats, but somehow I never thought I'd have my very own cat girl someday."
Max was too comfortable to get annoyed at his teasing. She curled closer against him and just smiled.
Logan watched her for a moment, and then he pulled her onto his lap and leaned in to give her a soft kiss.
Max was happy to respond, and they continued to lazily make out and sip their drinks for a while. Finally Logan rose. Before Max realized what he intended, he lifted her into his arms and carried her up to the sleeping loft. The rest of the night was spent in making leisurely love, alternating with dozing in each other's arms.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
The road back to Seattle was deserted, and they were making good time. They had left the vineyard early, and Logan figured they should be able to make it back in one day, if there were no unforeseen delays along the way. He had checked the net and he was confident that they were safe to return as themselves, which was a relief to Max. She hadn't looked forward to donning the blonde wig again. The last time she had worn it, all she had wanted to do the entire time was to take it off and scratch her hair.
They took turns choosing music and a classical piece was playing, Logan's choice, when Max turned to him and said, "Thanks, Logan."
He looked at her from the corner of his eyes, "For what?"
"The last few days. They were…nice."
Logan smiled at her. "Yeah, they were."
Max suddenly felt shy and she looked down as she played with her ring.
"What?" Logan wanted to know.
"This is going to sound dumb, but, I …feel married now. I mean, I know we were before, but it was different. This seems more real somehow." She looked out of the window, embarrassed at what she had revealed to him.
Logan's voice was soft as he responded, "I know." He reached over and took her hand in his, squeezing it gently.
They were silent, listening to the music and watching the scenery as they sped along the deserted highway.
Suddenly, Logan let out an oath. He slammed on the brakes, and the SUV shivered to a stop in the road. Logan looked over his shoulder and began to back the vehicle up. About 50 yards back he stopped.
Max had remained silent but on alert, and now she looked to where he was pointing.
There was a small heap of what appeared to be rags, lying on the left shoulder of the road, opposite the SUV. Max focused in and she saw what Logan had noticed glinting in the sun. A head of blonde hair.
Logan reached across Max and pulled his gun from the glove compartment and then joined her next to the SUV. Max was scanning up and down the road, and she looked at Logan and shook her head.
"No one in sight or sound," she said.
They crossed the road cautiously. Logan leaned down to inspect the bundle as Max continued to keep watch on the road.
"Max." Logan's voice was taut with shock. "Look at this."
Max looked down. The bundle was a girl, about her age, and she seemed to be unconscious. That wasn't what had surprised Logan. He was holding a handful of blonde hair off of the back of her neck. Max gasped as she saw the barcode imprinted there.
She dropped to her knees next to the girl, indicating that Logan should take over the watch. He stood and looked up and down the road, as she swiftly ran her hands over the girl. Then she easily lifted her into her arms.
"Come on. We need to get out of here." Max strode across the road, Logan right with her. He opened the back door of the SUV, and Max placed the girl inside. The two climbed back in and Logan started the engine. He didn't pull out onto the road right away but sat there in silence, thinking.
"What?" Max wanted to know.
"Who is she? Do you know her?" Logan's concern was evident in his voice.
"She was in my unit. She's one of us, the ones who got away that night. Her name is Jondy." Max said softly.
"Do you think she's safe?" Logan asked. "I mean, do you think she's still one of you? What if she was recaptured?"
"I think she's okay." Max pondered. "Zack would know for sure. If we could contact him." She muttered something under her breath about arrogant jerks and contact numbers.
"We can't risk going back into Seattle until we know for sure." Logan said even as his thoughts raced. "I'm going to head for the family cabin. Maybe you should slip in back with her. In case she wakes up and isn't a friendly."
Max nodded. "Probably a good idea. But isn't the cabin on the other side of Seattle?"
"Yeah, but we can make it in about four more hours. I can't risk taking her to Fogle Towers until we know more about her." Logan pulled the SUV onto the road and began to accelerate, as Max climbed over into the back to sit with Jondy.
Not fifteen minutes later, Max came to full alert. She reached over the seat and tapped Logan on the shoulder, motioning to him to pull the SUV off the road. He found a small pull off and guided the vehicle into the shadow of some tall trees. No sooner had he killed the ignition, than he became aware of a growing sound.
Within moments, he was able to identify it as the thwacka thwacka of helicopter blades. A shadow appeared ahead of them, on the road they had just pulled off of. Seconds later three black helicopters swooped past, flying low and clearly following the line of the highway.
They waited a few minutes, and then Max said to him, "Go. Let's get out of here."
Logan looked doubtfully at her for a moment, but she nodded impatiently. "I'll hear them if they head back our way. We need to make ourselves scarce. There could be ground forces coming from the other direction."
"We're out of here." Logan pulled the SUV onto the road and hit the gas, speeding away from the area where they had found Jondy, as quickly as he dared.
"Good thing Bunny was a blonde." He commented after time had passed and there were no signs of the helicopters returning.
Max looked at him.
"I have a feeling her papers may come in handy."
Max smiled at him. "Let's hope so."
End of Chapter Sixteen…