Disclaimer: YES! I own Michael Weatherly, I bought him on ebay for 29.95, and he's all MINE! . . . . . :Reality smacks lareina upside the head: All right, all right! :Shoulders slump in defeat.: I don't own any of them, I just borrow them from time to time. Don't bother suing me, I'm too much in debt to make it worth your while.
A/N: As usual, a HUGE thank you to my betas, afan and angel_gurl – you guys are the best!!! I don't know what this story would be without you. :pauses a moment and reflects: Yes, actually I do; it would be crap!!! Thanks, chicas!!!
A/N 2: I'd like to thank Gaiagalit, Zanna, mustang, Chris, Kyre, michelle, and Kazzy for reviewing my story. Aside from my betas, you guys are the only ones who reviewed my story; I'd like to thank you for that. Your reviews encouraged me to keep writing. Well, I probably would have finished the story anyway, because my muse demands it, but you guys let me know that someone out there cared. :Blows many kisses to everyone: Thanks, peeps! Ok, enough yap, more story!!!
Finding a Way Back, chapter 4
It was after midnight when the door to the penthouse opened and a black-clad figure silently slipped inside. Moving furtively through the living room, it was headed for the bedroom when a powerful flashlight beam hit it, and it stopped.
"I haven't got anything left to steal." Logan Cale stepped out of the computer room, his gun pointed directly at the figure's head.
Max turned around, her eyes sparkling as she watched the shock spread over his face. "But a girl's gotta make a living," she teased, recalling the words she'd spoken just over a year ago.
"Max!" Logan dropped the gun and swept her up in his arms. "You're alive . . ." he whispered, his voice breaking with unshed tears. "You came back . . ."
"I'll always come back to you, Logan," Max assured him, reveling in the feel of his arms around her. "Always . . ."
Suddenly, blinding white light coming from every direction illuminated the previously dark apartment. Max pulled back to find Logan and the apartment fading away. His voice came to her as if from a great distance. "Max . . . wake up . . ."
"Max, wake up!" Brin's voice jolted her awake, and Max opened her eyes to see her sister standing over her in the brightly lit cell with a breakfast tray. Max felt a tear slide down her cheek as the images from her dream of Heaven faded away, leaving her back in her personal hell.
Brin set the tray down on the table, and leaned over her to undo the restraint on her left arm. "Dreaming of home?" she asked quietly. She held up a hand before Max could protest. "It's all right, they're already deactivated." She undid the other restraint and sat down, not in the chair as usual, but on the side of the bed.
"Is anything happening?" Max asked as she began to eat. She understood the need for caution; Renfro didn't seem to suspect that Brin had seen Tinga's file, or that "X5-734" was no longer loyal to Manticore, but they couldn't announce Max's "conversion" too soon. Still, it had been two weeks since the reconditioning started, plenty of time for even the strongest X5 to break.
"I think so," Brin said, wiping the tear from Max's face. "I told Renfro yesterday that I believed you to be completely loyal to Manticore again, and proposed that I take you on a mission to test you. I wasn't sure if she bought it or not, but this morning she summoned me to her office first thing and said that she wanted to see you this afternoon, after the session."
"Do you think I can fool her?" Max asked nervously, biting her lip.
"If Lydecker was still here, I would say no," Brin admitted. "He raised us, basically; he knows how we think." She smiled briefly. "It didn't help him catch us, though. Anyway, Renfro's another story. She barely knows any of the X-series. We're nothing more than weapons to her; she doesn't care how we function, just that we do. I don't think you'll have much trouble with her."
Suddenly, the door opened; in a flash, Brin jumped up and snapped to attention.
"Relax, it's just me!" Victor grinned as he wheeled his cart into the room. "So, what's the word?"
"The word is go," Brin told him. "Set things up; I need to show Max how to fool Renfro."
Max paid very close attention to the session that morning, repeating the words over and over and burning the information into her mind. 'Get it right the first time,' she reminded herself. 'My life depends on this . . .'
Renfro's visit came without warning, just after lunch. As she entered the room, Max forced herself to lay straight and still on the cot, as they had when they were children, ignoring the restraints that still bound her.
The blond woman stood at the foot of the bed for several minutes, studying her with an unreadable expression on her face. "Undo the restraints," she said finally, gesturing at Brin. "I want her on her feet."
"Yes, ma'am!" Brin quickly snapped off the restraints.
The instant the last restraint was undone, Max shot to her feet and stood at attention beside her sister. "Ma'am, X5-452 reporting for duty, ma'am!" she said loudly, saluting.
Renfro returned the salute in a perfunctory manner. "What is your full designation, soldier?" she asked.
"Ma'am, this soldier's designation is 332960073452, ma'am!" Max replied, shooting all the information out in one breath.
"And what is your purpose, X5-452?" Renfro asked, a smile beginning to form on her face.
Max didn't blink; these were all expected questions. "Ma'am, this soldier's purpose is to serve, protect, and defend Manticore until my last breath, ma'am!"
Renfro's smile widened; she was obviously pleased with what she was hearing. "Would you kill to protect Manticore, X5-452?"
"Ma'am, yes ma'am!" Max replied.
"And who would you kill?" Renfro asked, one eyebrow lifting in speculation.
Max did blink at that; Brin hadn't mentioned this question. 'She's throwing you a curveball,' her mind whispered. 'Stay cool, you can do this!' She could feel Brin tense up next to her as she opened her mouth to answer. "Ma'am, this soldier would immediately execute anyone who posed a clear and present threat to the safety and survival of Manticore, ma'am!"
"Even me?" Renfro had stopped smiling, and was studying Max with a strangely intent expression.
Max felt her stomach tie itself into a knot. Her life depended on the answer to this question, she was certain of it, and she had no idea what to say. 'I could be dead either way,' she said to herself. 'Oh well, here we go . . .' Mentally, she flipped a coin. "Ma'am, if Manticore's survival required your death, yes ma'am!"
Renfro turned away from her, walking to the other side of the room. There was a long pause; Max could feel beads of sweat forming on her forehead as she waited for the other woman to speak. 'Oh, shit, I said the wrong thing!' an inner voice wailed. 'I am so dead!' All of a sudden, a staccato noise broke the silence, and Max was surprised to see Renfro clapping as she turned around.
"Very good, X5-452," she said. "Welcome back to your family." She turned to Brin. "Report to my office at 2200 hours, and I'll have your mission briefing. You'll leave first thing in the morning."
"Yes, ma'am!" Brin saluted as Renfro left the room. When the footsteps faded away, she ran to the door and opened it, checking the hallway to make sure it was clear. Pulling her head back in, she double-checked the deactivated cameras and turned to Max. "I think we did it, little sister," she said, a smile spreading across her face.
All the strength went out of Max's spine as she heard that, and she sat down heavily on the bed. "One more night," she said softly, looking up at Brin. "One more night of hell, and I'm home free?"
"We're both home free," Brin reminded her firmly. "I'll be back later, after I get the briefing from Renfro, to let you know where we're being sent. Try to get some rest." She smiled again before slipping from the room.
Max didn't remember closing her eyes, but suddenly she was being wakened by Brin, and only moonlight shone into the cell.
"Did you get it?" Max asked, shaking her head to clear the cobwebs. "Where are they sending us?"
The moonlight was coming in from behind Brin, so Max couldn't see her sister's face clearly. "They're sending us to Seattle," she said finally. "Our mission is to kill Eyes Only."
