Chapter 6- "Razor Wire"
A/N: title is a spin on the saying "walking a thin line" meaning that you could fall on either side of it, and maybe die or loose face in the process. Razor wire is that thin, so hence the title.
*****
LOS ANGELOS
"Ty?" Cree held the cordless phone to her ear, leaning back against the pillows on her bed. Jade was still at school and both her parents were still at work.
"Hey" there was some jostling on his end
"Hey yourself"
"How've you been?"
"Aiight" she told him "You?"
"Making my existence memorable"
"I'll bet"
He smiled from his end. "Your friend Max told me to say 'hey'"
"How is she?"
"She's fine."
"And Logan and Cindy?"
"What do I look like their momma? I guess they're good too."
"Glad to hear it"
"So-- what are you wearing?"
"Ty-"
*It's the B to the O-W
Wow even your girl fall in love
When I smile
The tight little guy you ain't seen in a while
Ignore the hype, just right for you size*
"Hey what? C'mon it's the only thing that keeps me going since you're not here"
"You really wanna know?"
"Hell yeah"
"Black track pants and a gray and red baseball shirt."
"Damn, that's my sexy momma"
*All I wanna do is see ya
Bounce with me, bounce with me
Grab a partner hit the floor
Bounce with me, bounce with me
Some clap, clap others stomp
But around here we get it crunk when ya
Bounce with me, bounce with me*
"Ty you're a dork"
"What you don't think that your outfit's smoking?"
"Okay now you sound gay"
"If you were here I would prove to you that I'm not-" he broke off. He always was very careful when talking to her about sex. He didn't want to rush her because of what she went through. "Sorry. I got carried away"
"It's coo'" she told him "Kinda carrying away I like"
"How's your mom?"
"She's good. She's at work."
"Kinda mom I'd like to have. Great for scaring the piss outta bullies."
"Ty you're twenty-two, tellin' me you still have bullin' wallin' on you?"
"You have a black belt" he reminded, "You could protect me"
"Oh I'll protect you"
*I, I, I wanna see you bounce with me now
Take, take, take it down to the ground with me now
Shake, shake, shake it all around the town with me now
What'cha gon do shorty, what'cha gon do*
"That's my girl."
"Again I say you're a dork"
"But ya love me anyways right?"
She shook her head, but smiled "Yeah I do"
There was some more noise on the other end "Look I gotta go. It's my turn to cook dinner for the guys."
"Aiight. Don't kill anyone."
"Do my best"
"Talk to ya later honey buns."
"Take care angel pie."
"Cree-"
"Yeah?"
"I love you"
A pause
"Cree? Hello?"
"Yeah me too."
*Click*
*****
CHINA
UNKNOWN DISTRICT
The truck finally came to a halt two hours later, jolting the chickens and the woman out of their slumber. For the chickens, this action caused them to start squawking, but the woman remained silent. She had no idea if whoever was driving this truck would receive her with open arms, and she didn't want to know.
They were from moderate lives, like her own previous existence. She looked like a hooker, smelled and felt like a hooker, and because of people's need for money, they might just return her to her pimp, or worse yet the Chinese police for money.
The back flatbed door opened, and she heard voices
"200 plus chickens, and only four hundred yen. How will I feed even myself with that little shit?"
Him and one other man climbed into the back of the truck to start unloading the chicken carriers.
The birds continued squawking and she heard them coming closer to where she was crouched. She was as caged as one of the chickens in those wire cages. She heard the footsteps of one of the men come within three inches of her, and the surprised voice followed
"What the hell?" a flashlight dropped.
She made her move then, using the darkness as a cloak, shoving her way forward out of the truck.
"What in the fuck is this?" the man watched the woman sprint off shoving past him
*How can you see into my eyes
Like open doors.
Leading you down into my core
Where I've become so numb.
Without a soul
My spirit's sleeping somewhere cold
Until you find it there and lead it back home*
She ran, her bare feet hitting everything that was cold and broken and dirty on the road. She fell once, her injury being ground into the filth. It stung like hell, but she still ran, didn't even know where she was going.
*Wake me up.
Wake me up inside.
I can't wake up.
Wake me up inside.
Save me.
Call my name and save me from the dark*
*****
UNITED STATES
SEATTLE
LOGAN'S APARTMENT
7:00 AM
*Wake me up.
Bid my blood to run.
I can't wake up.
Before I come undone.
Save me.
Save me from the nothing I've become*
Max had been completely still throughout the night. But now she seemed to becoming around, struggling to wake up.
Logan stroked her face. "It's okay, you're okay. Wake up Max."
= = = =
(Max's dream sequence)
(Setting: woods surrounding Manticore)
Her lungs had endured far worse then the running she was doing now, but it never burned as much. Falling through the icy waters weakened her slightly.
She didn't see any of the others, they had all run in separate directions, per Zack's order. She heard the "whooshing" sound of the helicopter's blades over head. She managed to stay once step ahead of the floodlights beaming at her from the chopper. Her feet were numb from the snow and ice, but numb was better then pain so she ignored it like she had been trained to do.
She had no idea where the hell she was going, but she kept on. A moving target was harder to trace. And if she stayed stationary in these woods, she could very well freeze to death, or become dinner for the predatory animals that came out at night to hunt.
She saw something in the distance, she ducked down. It was one of her unit. She started to give a call to them, but ground forces from the base surrounded them, and she watched for a second, before running. She didn't even know if they made it out, or who they were, except that they were one of hers.
The cold was biting at her now. She ran into something hard. Looking up for a split second she saw a tree was in her way. She brushed that aside and was ready to take off again, when she felt something snatch her from behind her back.
= = = =
*Now that I know what I'm without
you can't just leave me.
Breathe into me and make me real
Bring me to life*
She awoke suddenly, jerking when she felt something on her.
"Max, Max! Calm down! it's me"
She whipped her head around and met Logan's eyes on her. "Logan?" her voice gave away her confusion "What the hell is going on?"
"What's the last thing you remember?"
She didn't like where this was going. Why was he asking her all these things? "We were at Crash. Some looser was hitting on me-"
"He did more then that"
Max looked at him, demanding an answer to that open ended remark.
His fingers grazed her shoulder "He injected you with some Rohypnol"
She pushed aside his hand and felt the mark for herself "Damn, I was hopin' it was only a mosquito or somethin'" she dropped her hand and turned to look at him "How long was I out?"
"About nine hours"
Max looked shocked "With my screwed up DNA I'm surprised it didn't send me into a coma"
"Why do you think I'm sitting here?" Logan didn't hide the worry in his voice. He had kept tabs on her all night. She had scared him being so quiet.
She sensed his worry. "Good now though."
"Max you're not good after undergoing false sleep." He argued
"I'm awake Logan." She told him "That's better then bein' drugged outta my mind." She stretched "And I'm sore too, damn" she rubbed at her neck "Was I laying on a rake or something?" she stretched again.
"Probably an affect of you laying down so long" he started to rub at her neck at shoulders. "You're not use to being prone for that many hours."
"Feels like an elephant sat on me and kept changing positions." She rolled her head around to work out some of the kinks.
"Why don't you take a hot shower?" he suggested while continuing to massage her "That'll help work out the stiffness."
"What would I wear afterwards?" she asked "Not in the mood for Normal's lectures bout not wearing a shortem towel to work."
He laughed quietly "Give your stuff to me and I'll throw it in the wash while your in the shower. You can wear my robe until everything's clean."
"That'll make me late" she told him flatly "Not that I really care, just not in the mood for Anal Mania this morning"
"I'll get you a doctor's note" he kissed the back of her neck "And it wouldn't even be lying. You were messed up last night" he used one of her phrases.
"Appreciate the props" she told him
"And I'll appreciate it if you get in the shower before my arms wear out"
"Fine" she faked a sigh. "Tell ya it never ends."
He smiled and kissed the back of her head "Don't suck up all my hot water"
"Watch me" she climbed off the bed and retreated to the master bath.
A few seconds later her jeans, tank top and lingerie came flying out the door.
Logan collected the pile of clothes and added a few things of his own to make a full load, heading off to the small service area where he kept his washer and dryer. A good thing about living in a classy penthouse is he had his own hookups for the machines and didn't have to use a coin laundry system.
He threw all the clothes inside, added the right amount of detergent, waiting until he heard the shower start up, and turned the water in the machine to 'cold' so she could have all the hot water for her shower.
/There's no going back now man. You've mixed her laundry with yours./ He closed the lid of the machine just as the phone rang.
He headed back in the living room and picked up the cordless unit
"Yeah"
"Hey Logan, just called for a status report" Cindy was on the other end "Didn't get much sleep last night worryin' bout my girl"
"She woke up about an hour ago" Logan told her the good news "She seems fine, she's complaining of being sore, but I think it's because she's not use to laying down for so long."
"Great to hear" Cindy's voice was relieved "Can I talk to her?"
"Actually she's in the shower" Logan confessed
You could almost hear Cindy's eyebrows raising over the phone "Aiight. I'll catch her at work. Thanks boo" she hung up.
Logan hung up as well. He had nothing to do at the moment, so he busied himself with making some coffee. He knew Max loved two inanimate things above all the others in her life, her motorcycle and her coffee. He set the coffee to percolate and went to check on the status of the laundry. The cycle was almost complete so he hung out around the machine and waited.
"You know if you watch it long enough bet it'll run away" Max was now out of the shower, and standing beside him in his red terry towel robe with her damp hair falling round her shoulders.
The machine's timer buzzed and Logan transferred all the laundry to the drier, adding the sheet and turning it on once the door was closed.
He turned to her, giving her a silent once over. "How was your shower?"
"Nice." She told him "Uneventful." She looked at him "Do I past inspection?"
"Oh you more then past inspection Max" he leaned over and kissed her on the mouth.
"That kiss come with some coffee?"
Logan pulled back "I see how this is going now. You're only using me for my caffeine."
"Fraid so" she returned
"Coffee's in the kitchen"
"Great" she smiled "And this coffee thing wouldn't be as good if I didn't have such a good supplier" this time she kissed him before heading off to retrieve her caffeine sustenance.
"Cindy called while you were in the shower" he watched her jump up and sit on top of the counter coffee cup in hand and was amazed that she still managed to keep the robe covering all the right places. Not that he would have minded seeing what was underneath his robe, he had his addictions too-Max. "She said she'd catch you at work."
Max gave an approving nod to his remark while taking a sip from the mug in her hands. "You know she's gonna be asking me bout what went down here."
"I didn't say a word"
"Yeah but you have that look"
"What look?"
"That 'I know something on the DL' look you always get when you try to hide stuff from me"
"Max there was no look"
"You also suck at lying, so don't even try it"
"I don't suck at lying"
"Sound like its your second job" she took another swig from her cup "Aiight, give me a lie. See if you can do what you claim."
"That robe is terrible on you"
"See?" she pointed out "You suck at lying"
"Who said I was lying?"
She glared at him "If this robe is so bad on me how bout I take it off?"
"Well I can't lie there and say that it wouldn't be a good thing"
*I taste just like candy, candy
I taste just like candy
So dance with me*
One of Max's eyebrows rose higher then it's sistah, and she smiled like she had just eaten an incredibly indulging light trapping, sugar loaded piece of milk chocolate.
"You're tryin' to seduce me aren't ya?"
"Who me? No" Logan feigned innocence, but his eyes gave it away.
*Yo now let me paint y'all a whisper
Fox pimp hard, quiet just like a whisper
Don't get it mixed up
Bad little sista
Not bad meaning bad, but bad meaning good
Damn I'm so hood
You should see me in them jeans
It's hard to describe and
Being cocky is just a part of the vibe*
"It wouldn't be right" he didn't sound completely convinced about what he was saying, "You just got over being sick-"
"I'm fine now" she told him, leaving it at that, letting him use his own imagination to fill in the rest. Her cat like eyes were on him the entire time.
He smiled "Don't you hafta go to work?"
She just looked at him "You're the one who said I should take my time."
*****
LOS ANGELOS
"Nice" Jondy looked at her student's painting "REAL nice girl"
Jade smiled "Thanks"
Jondy returned the smile and continued to walk down the row. A few seconds later the bell rang
"Okay guys, that's it for now" Jondy watched all her students leave. Something weird came over her when she watched some of the boys leave, like it had just gotten hotter in the room all of a sudden.
"Ms. Sam?" Jade looked at her "You okay?"
Jondy turned her head "Yeah, yeah, I just-never mind. Get outta here and have a life"
Jade smiled "Kay, see ya tomorrow"
"Yeah" Jondy told her. She was still watching the boys in her class leave.
"Ms. Locke"
She turned, to see a fellow teacher there, a man not much older then herself.
"Hey David" 'Sam' waved at him "Why so formal?" she walked over to him and was assaulted with a pungy aroma, an overpowering smell. But it wasn't his cologne or aftershave. It was something stronger.
"Sorry-" Jondy broke David out of his talking "What?"
David looked at her "are you okay Sam? You seemed far away there"
The smell was always there, becoming stronger as he moved "I'm fine. Just been a long first day of the week" she noticed the Adam's apple in his neck move with each breath.
David smiled "Hear that all right" He checked his watch "Well I have to get to a meeting" he looked up "see ya around"
"Bye" Jondy watched him leave, feeling the overpowering urge to go follow him, not to talk, but to find the origin of that distracting smell. She grabbed her keys and her jacket and left the classroom intending on going home. She headed out of the building and down the stairs to her bike, a studio yellow Kawasaki Ninja ZX-9R. She slid the jacket on her body, and caught a whiff of the smell again. Stronger this time, triple fold then what she experienced with David.
She turned around, and she saw someone standing there, looking at her from the brick wall of the school. Wearing leather and a ski cap covering his hair. He looked like he could be one of her students, almost except he was a few years older. Against her will she headed over to him. He didn't moved, watching her approach with every step.
"Hey" she smiled a lazy smile at him
Whoever he was, he didn't speak, just continued to watch her silently
"Ya like spoonin' up with cats" she traced his face with a sensual hand before attacking him, slamming him against the wall and kissing him hotly.
*****
SEATTLE
"NON EXISTANT BROTHEL"
"Faster bitch!" the man gasped out to the woman giving him a blow job. He spasmed, but not as much as he would've liked "I said FASTER!" he kicked her in the face, which unfortunately made her bite down on his nuts.
*****
LOS ANGELOS
Finally he started to respond, rolling on top of her and kissing her neck.
She removed her jacket in an art form way and set is beside her. The wall of the school hid them from anyone's view, so no one noticed them back there.
*He was doing 8-0 on the freeway
In the 6 double O, bumpin Isley
He was gettin kinda close, kinda touch-ay
Cuz he had a little too much Hennessey
He told me that he wanna go home, with me up on the hill to my condo
Told me he would keep it all on the low-low
But I told him, "boo, I don't really know though"
He got closer to me...it started gettin deep
He had me in a zone when he started to show me things
I never saw before
Baby was smooth but I knew it was game
Hell-of-a cool but you men are the same
The way he licked his lips and touched my hips
I knew that he was slick*
Her sweater went the same way as her jacket, and she took his hands and put them on her. She didn't know who he was, just that he was giving her what she wanted. He was kissing her now, on her exposed skin, warm ones. She bit her lip and arched her back, clutching at his hair.
*You make me sick
I want you and I'm hatin it
Got me lit like a candlestick
Get too hot when you touch the tip, I'm feelin it, I gotta getta grip
And it's drivin me crazy baby don't you quit
Can't get enough of it
You got me goin again
Baby, you got me goin again
You make me sick*
*****
SEATTLE
"AHH!" he cried and yanked himself out of her mouth. He rubbed his member with one hand. "You scank!" he picked up a lamp and threw it at her. It slammed into the side of her face.
Blood dripped from it as she screamed.
"Girl shut up!" he got up and went over to her and started kicking her, "SHUT THE FUCK UP!" she eventually stopped screaming.
*Who's to blame for the lives that tragedies claim
No matter what you say
It don't take away the pain
That I feel inside, I'm tired of all the lies
Don't nobody know why
It's the blind leading the blind
I guess that's the way the story goes
Will it ever make sense
Somebody's got to know
There's got to be more to life than this
There's got to be more to everything
I thought exists*
After he left she felt someone poking at her body with a stick
"She's still alive. Hose her off and put her back with the others, and get dude to give me my money"
*We are, We are, the youth of the nation
We are, We are, the youth of the nation*
*****
LOS ANGELOS
She let got of his hair and gripped the back of his neck. Her face contorted when she felt something there. She turned and looked the mystery man in the eye.
/FLASH: "Move!" he shouted at her, picking her up and forcing her to her feet.
Jondy ran, looking back at him once more before she lost sight of him./
"Zack?" Jondy got the shock of her life when she realized who was on top of her. She threw him off of her and stood up in a rush, her breathing making her black lace bra move up and down fast.
Zack, who up until then had been 'Mystery Man' stood up. He had also gotten shirtless in their escapade.
Jondy growled and lunged him into the wall again, only this time she did it as a tactful battle move. She kicked up her foot and stuck the bottoms of her black Sketchers right at his throat "Why the fuck didn't you say anything?"
Zack grabbed her foot and shoved her backwards causing her to loose her balance. She hit the ground on her back, but rebounded a few seconds later.
"It would have helped Jondy" Zack growled back
"So you just thought fucking your little sister would be better?"
"Better me then some anonymous prick"
"Better incest then one night stands huh?" she was pissed, and kinda sick, thinking how close she came to having sex with her brother.
"I smelled you" Zack pointed out "I smelled you the same way you smelled me. When girl cats go into heat males smell it too baby sister. That's why they compete for her. But I'll bet I'm the only guy in this whole freakin' city that knows exactly what you want, and will satisfy it"
"I didn't see you winning any trophies back there Zack" Jondy spat "You think I LIKE cuming inside my brother?!? And no man knows what women want" she balled his shirt up and launched it at his head. "Stay the hell away from my personal areas!" she threw on her shirt and reached for her jacket.
"What no welcome wagon?" Zack slid on his long sleeved navy blue cotton shirt
"Bite me!" she growled, flipping him off.
This time Zack grabbed her and pinned her against the wall. "I didn't come all the way out here for this shit"
"Then I suggest you close your mouth before you bid the tides to cum"
Zack released her.
She glowered at him and beat the dirt out of her jacket. She could still smell him, but now the only thing she wanted was a freezing cold shower and get a hold of matches to burn the underwear she was wearing. "What the hell are you even doing here? Thought we would be 'compromised' if any of us met up"
"Told you I'd look out for you remember?"
"But not that you'd look in" she spat back
*We are we are, youth of the nation*
He tried to reach for her "Jondy-"
She slammed his hand down. "Shoulda said THAT before" she walked away, leaving him there.
"How long do you think it'll take before Manticore notices the set up you lied for here?"
She whirled on him "Then why the hell did you come and make it worse?" she came back over to him a little ways "Huh?"
"I came here to tell you something"
"Yeah?" she now stood face to face with him "Well fuck off Zack cause I'm still gettin' over the fact that you tried to hump me" she whirled around and started to walk away.
"I know where Max is"
This stopped Jondy dead in her tracks, she turned completely back around. "How do you know where she is if none of us are suppose to have any contact with each other? That was your game plan remember?"
"I wanted to know that she was safe Jondy."
"Sam"
"What?"
"Sam" Jondy told him "You wanna keep my cover, call me Sam" she paused "Was she safe?"
"As long as she doesn't keep screwing things up"
"Where is she?"
"Jondy" he ignored her earlier request
"Oh so you can know where she is but I can't?" she was getting more and more pissed off "She's my sister too Zack. I have a right to know. Has she contacted you?"
"I never gave her the number"
"Why the hell not?"
"She's too reckless."
"What the fuck does that mean? We're all reckless, why we broke out in the first place"
"She's exposed herself too many times Jondy. I can't risk her bringing the others down with her."
"You can't just abandon her Zack. She's our sister. We look after each other." She looked him dead in the eye "I wanna know where she is"
"I can't tell you"
"Then I'll find out another way. You're not the only one with tracking abilities remember? I'm from Manticore too."
*You cross the line and there's no turning back
Told the world how he felt
With the sound of a gat
We are, We are, the youth of the nation*
She turned again, and this time, she left.
*****
CHINA
She finally stopped to rest, her lungs felt like they were going to burst out of her chest. She leaned against an alleyway. Rats scurried around her, some drinking in the puddles. Blood still tricked down her leg from the gunshot wound. Her broken wrist throbbed painfully. She held it with her good hand, biting her lip to keep from screaming.
She smelled worse then the garbage she was leaning against. She rested a weary head against a metal trash can.
*Convinced of my deception
I've always been a fool
I fear this love reaction
Just like you said I would
A rose could never lie
About the love it brings
And I could never promise
To be any of those things*
A few tears splashed down her face. She hadn't even had time to cry. The wound was filthy. She had to shoo a rat away that had climbed on her leg. Her broken wrist throbbed incessantly. She bit her lip to keep from crying out at both pains she was experiencing. There were no stars out. The section of China she was currently in was all industrial, smog covering the sky in a gray starless haze.
*If I was not so weak
If I was not so cold
If I was not so scared of being broken
Growing old
I would be...
I would be...
I would be...*
She missed the way the stars twinkled. She hadn't seen any since moving to the city from her small village. She did what she had to do to survive with her children after the Chinese Police killed her husband in a raid. Her job as a waitress in a bar dive had wound her where she was. She didn't know, she needed the money, she did what she had to do to survive.
*If I was not so weak
If I was not so cold
If I was not so scared of being broken
Growing old
I would be...
I would be...
I would be...
...Frail*
*****
I never intended to have Jondy and Zack have a relationship. That's not how I see it. Zack was, in his own, strange way trying to "aid" her with her problem (meaning her being in heat) But she of course didn't like it. They weren't like that. I did a scene switch back and forth between LA and Seattle to parallel the two scenes.
I'm getting hungry now..but before I go, as usual.
Songs used are:
Ty and Cree talking on the phone- "Bounce With Me" (Lil' Bow Wow)
Scenes in China and Logan's penthouse - "Bring Me to Life" (Evanescence feat. Paul McCoy)
Logan and Max talking in Logan's apartment- "Candy" (Foxy Brown from "Dark Angel" Soundtrack)
Jondy's heat cycle- "You Make Me Sick" (Pink "Save the Last Dance" Soundtrack)
Scene switch from Seattle to LA "Youth of the Nation" (P.O.D)
Woman in alleyway of Bangkok at final chapter scene "Frail" (Jars of Clay)
R/R please
Peace
Mystic
A/N: title is a spin on the saying "walking a thin line" meaning that you could fall on either side of it, and maybe die or loose face in the process. Razor wire is that thin, so hence the title.
*****
LOS ANGELOS
"Ty?" Cree held the cordless phone to her ear, leaning back against the pillows on her bed. Jade was still at school and both her parents were still at work.
"Hey" there was some jostling on his end
"Hey yourself"
"How've you been?"
"Aiight" she told him "You?"
"Making my existence memorable"
"I'll bet"
He smiled from his end. "Your friend Max told me to say 'hey'"
"How is she?"
"She's fine."
"And Logan and Cindy?"
"What do I look like their momma? I guess they're good too."
"Glad to hear it"
"So-- what are you wearing?"
"Ty-"
*It's the B to the O-W
Wow even your girl fall in love
When I smile
The tight little guy you ain't seen in a while
Ignore the hype, just right for you size*
"Hey what? C'mon it's the only thing that keeps me going since you're not here"
"You really wanna know?"
"Hell yeah"
"Black track pants and a gray and red baseball shirt."
"Damn, that's my sexy momma"
*All I wanna do is see ya
Bounce with me, bounce with me
Grab a partner hit the floor
Bounce with me, bounce with me
Some clap, clap others stomp
But around here we get it crunk when ya
Bounce with me, bounce with me*
"Ty you're a dork"
"What you don't think that your outfit's smoking?"
"Okay now you sound gay"
"If you were here I would prove to you that I'm not-" he broke off. He always was very careful when talking to her about sex. He didn't want to rush her because of what she went through. "Sorry. I got carried away"
"It's coo'" she told him "Kinda carrying away I like"
"How's your mom?"
"She's good. She's at work."
"Kinda mom I'd like to have. Great for scaring the piss outta bullies."
"Ty you're twenty-two, tellin' me you still have bullin' wallin' on you?"
"You have a black belt" he reminded, "You could protect me"
"Oh I'll protect you"
*I, I, I wanna see you bounce with me now
Take, take, take it down to the ground with me now
Shake, shake, shake it all around the town with me now
What'cha gon do shorty, what'cha gon do*
"That's my girl."
"Again I say you're a dork"
"But ya love me anyways right?"
She shook her head, but smiled "Yeah I do"
There was some more noise on the other end "Look I gotta go. It's my turn to cook dinner for the guys."
"Aiight. Don't kill anyone."
"Do my best"
"Talk to ya later honey buns."
"Take care angel pie."
"Cree-"
"Yeah?"
"I love you"
A pause
"Cree? Hello?"
"Yeah me too."
*Click*
*****
CHINA
UNKNOWN DISTRICT
The truck finally came to a halt two hours later, jolting the chickens and the woman out of their slumber. For the chickens, this action caused them to start squawking, but the woman remained silent. She had no idea if whoever was driving this truck would receive her with open arms, and she didn't want to know.
They were from moderate lives, like her own previous existence. She looked like a hooker, smelled and felt like a hooker, and because of people's need for money, they might just return her to her pimp, or worse yet the Chinese police for money.
The back flatbed door opened, and she heard voices
"200 plus chickens, and only four hundred yen. How will I feed even myself with that little shit?"
Him and one other man climbed into the back of the truck to start unloading the chicken carriers.
The birds continued squawking and she heard them coming closer to where she was crouched. She was as caged as one of the chickens in those wire cages. She heard the footsteps of one of the men come within three inches of her, and the surprised voice followed
"What the hell?" a flashlight dropped.
She made her move then, using the darkness as a cloak, shoving her way forward out of the truck.
"What in the fuck is this?" the man watched the woman sprint off shoving past him
*How can you see into my eyes
Like open doors.
Leading you down into my core
Where I've become so numb.
Without a soul
My spirit's sleeping somewhere cold
Until you find it there and lead it back home*
She ran, her bare feet hitting everything that was cold and broken and dirty on the road. She fell once, her injury being ground into the filth. It stung like hell, but she still ran, didn't even know where she was going.
*Wake me up.
Wake me up inside.
I can't wake up.
Wake me up inside.
Save me.
Call my name and save me from the dark*
*****
UNITED STATES
SEATTLE
LOGAN'S APARTMENT
7:00 AM
*Wake me up.
Bid my blood to run.
I can't wake up.
Before I come undone.
Save me.
Save me from the nothing I've become*
Max had been completely still throughout the night. But now she seemed to becoming around, struggling to wake up.
Logan stroked her face. "It's okay, you're okay. Wake up Max."
= = = =
(Max's dream sequence)
(Setting: woods surrounding Manticore)
Her lungs had endured far worse then the running she was doing now, but it never burned as much. Falling through the icy waters weakened her slightly.
She didn't see any of the others, they had all run in separate directions, per Zack's order. She heard the "whooshing" sound of the helicopter's blades over head. She managed to stay once step ahead of the floodlights beaming at her from the chopper. Her feet were numb from the snow and ice, but numb was better then pain so she ignored it like she had been trained to do.
She had no idea where the hell she was going, but she kept on. A moving target was harder to trace. And if she stayed stationary in these woods, she could very well freeze to death, or become dinner for the predatory animals that came out at night to hunt.
She saw something in the distance, she ducked down. It was one of her unit. She started to give a call to them, but ground forces from the base surrounded them, and she watched for a second, before running. She didn't even know if they made it out, or who they were, except that they were one of hers.
The cold was biting at her now. She ran into something hard. Looking up for a split second she saw a tree was in her way. She brushed that aside and was ready to take off again, when she felt something snatch her from behind her back.
= = = =
*Now that I know what I'm without
you can't just leave me.
Breathe into me and make me real
Bring me to life*
She awoke suddenly, jerking when she felt something on her.
"Max, Max! Calm down! it's me"
She whipped her head around and met Logan's eyes on her. "Logan?" her voice gave away her confusion "What the hell is going on?"
"What's the last thing you remember?"
She didn't like where this was going. Why was he asking her all these things? "We were at Crash. Some looser was hitting on me-"
"He did more then that"
Max looked at him, demanding an answer to that open ended remark.
His fingers grazed her shoulder "He injected you with some Rohypnol"
She pushed aside his hand and felt the mark for herself "Damn, I was hopin' it was only a mosquito or somethin'" she dropped her hand and turned to look at him "How long was I out?"
"About nine hours"
Max looked shocked "With my screwed up DNA I'm surprised it didn't send me into a coma"
"Why do you think I'm sitting here?" Logan didn't hide the worry in his voice. He had kept tabs on her all night. She had scared him being so quiet.
She sensed his worry. "Good now though."
"Max you're not good after undergoing false sleep." He argued
"I'm awake Logan." She told him "That's better then bein' drugged outta my mind." She stretched "And I'm sore too, damn" she rubbed at her neck "Was I laying on a rake or something?" she stretched again.
"Probably an affect of you laying down so long" he started to rub at her neck at shoulders. "You're not use to being prone for that many hours."
"Feels like an elephant sat on me and kept changing positions." She rolled her head around to work out some of the kinks.
"Why don't you take a hot shower?" he suggested while continuing to massage her "That'll help work out the stiffness."
"What would I wear afterwards?" she asked "Not in the mood for Normal's lectures bout not wearing a shortem towel to work."
He laughed quietly "Give your stuff to me and I'll throw it in the wash while your in the shower. You can wear my robe until everything's clean."
"That'll make me late" she told him flatly "Not that I really care, just not in the mood for Anal Mania this morning"
"I'll get you a doctor's note" he kissed the back of her neck "And it wouldn't even be lying. You were messed up last night" he used one of her phrases.
"Appreciate the props" she told him
"And I'll appreciate it if you get in the shower before my arms wear out"
"Fine" she faked a sigh. "Tell ya it never ends."
He smiled and kissed the back of her head "Don't suck up all my hot water"
"Watch me" she climbed off the bed and retreated to the master bath.
A few seconds later her jeans, tank top and lingerie came flying out the door.
Logan collected the pile of clothes and added a few things of his own to make a full load, heading off to the small service area where he kept his washer and dryer. A good thing about living in a classy penthouse is he had his own hookups for the machines and didn't have to use a coin laundry system.
He threw all the clothes inside, added the right amount of detergent, waiting until he heard the shower start up, and turned the water in the machine to 'cold' so she could have all the hot water for her shower.
/There's no going back now man. You've mixed her laundry with yours./ He closed the lid of the machine just as the phone rang.
He headed back in the living room and picked up the cordless unit
"Yeah"
"Hey Logan, just called for a status report" Cindy was on the other end "Didn't get much sleep last night worryin' bout my girl"
"She woke up about an hour ago" Logan told her the good news "She seems fine, she's complaining of being sore, but I think it's because she's not use to laying down for so long."
"Great to hear" Cindy's voice was relieved "Can I talk to her?"
"Actually she's in the shower" Logan confessed
You could almost hear Cindy's eyebrows raising over the phone "Aiight. I'll catch her at work. Thanks boo" she hung up.
Logan hung up as well. He had nothing to do at the moment, so he busied himself with making some coffee. He knew Max loved two inanimate things above all the others in her life, her motorcycle and her coffee. He set the coffee to percolate and went to check on the status of the laundry. The cycle was almost complete so he hung out around the machine and waited.
"You know if you watch it long enough bet it'll run away" Max was now out of the shower, and standing beside him in his red terry towel robe with her damp hair falling round her shoulders.
The machine's timer buzzed and Logan transferred all the laundry to the drier, adding the sheet and turning it on once the door was closed.
He turned to her, giving her a silent once over. "How was your shower?"
"Nice." She told him "Uneventful." She looked at him "Do I past inspection?"
"Oh you more then past inspection Max" he leaned over and kissed her on the mouth.
"That kiss come with some coffee?"
Logan pulled back "I see how this is going now. You're only using me for my caffeine."
"Fraid so" she returned
"Coffee's in the kitchen"
"Great" she smiled "And this coffee thing wouldn't be as good if I didn't have such a good supplier" this time she kissed him before heading off to retrieve her caffeine sustenance.
"Cindy called while you were in the shower" he watched her jump up and sit on top of the counter coffee cup in hand and was amazed that she still managed to keep the robe covering all the right places. Not that he would have minded seeing what was underneath his robe, he had his addictions too-Max. "She said she'd catch you at work."
Max gave an approving nod to his remark while taking a sip from the mug in her hands. "You know she's gonna be asking me bout what went down here."
"I didn't say a word"
"Yeah but you have that look"
"What look?"
"That 'I know something on the DL' look you always get when you try to hide stuff from me"
"Max there was no look"
"You also suck at lying, so don't even try it"
"I don't suck at lying"
"Sound like its your second job" she took another swig from her cup "Aiight, give me a lie. See if you can do what you claim."
"That robe is terrible on you"
"See?" she pointed out "You suck at lying"
"Who said I was lying?"
She glared at him "If this robe is so bad on me how bout I take it off?"
"Well I can't lie there and say that it wouldn't be a good thing"
*I taste just like candy, candy
I taste just like candy
So dance with me*
One of Max's eyebrows rose higher then it's sistah, and she smiled like she had just eaten an incredibly indulging light trapping, sugar loaded piece of milk chocolate.
"You're tryin' to seduce me aren't ya?"
"Who me? No" Logan feigned innocence, but his eyes gave it away.
*Yo now let me paint y'all a whisper
Fox pimp hard, quiet just like a whisper
Don't get it mixed up
Bad little sista
Not bad meaning bad, but bad meaning good
Damn I'm so hood
You should see me in them jeans
It's hard to describe and
Being cocky is just a part of the vibe*
"It wouldn't be right" he didn't sound completely convinced about what he was saying, "You just got over being sick-"
"I'm fine now" she told him, leaving it at that, letting him use his own imagination to fill in the rest. Her cat like eyes were on him the entire time.
He smiled "Don't you hafta go to work?"
She just looked at him "You're the one who said I should take my time."
*****
LOS ANGELOS
"Nice" Jondy looked at her student's painting "REAL nice girl"
Jade smiled "Thanks"
Jondy returned the smile and continued to walk down the row. A few seconds later the bell rang
"Okay guys, that's it for now" Jondy watched all her students leave. Something weird came over her when she watched some of the boys leave, like it had just gotten hotter in the room all of a sudden.
"Ms. Sam?" Jade looked at her "You okay?"
Jondy turned her head "Yeah, yeah, I just-never mind. Get outta here and have a life"
Jade smiled "Kay, see ya tomorrow"
"Yeah" Jondy told her. She was still watching the boys in her class leave.
"Ms. Locke"
She turned, to see a fellow teacher there, a man not much older then herself.
"Hey David" 'Sam' waved at him "Why so formal?" she walked over to him and was assaulted with a pungy aroma, an overpowering smell. But it wasn't his cologne or aftershave. It was something stronger.
"Sorry-" Jondy broke David out of his talking "What?"
David looked at her "are you okay Sam? You seemed far away there"
The smell was always there, becoming stronger as he moved "I'm fine. Just been a long first day of the week" she noticed the Adam's apple in his neck move with each breath.
David smiled "Hear that all right" He checked his watch "Well I have to get to a meeting" he looked up "see ya around"
"Bye" Jondy watched him leave, feeling the overpowering urge to go follow him, not to talk, but to find the origin of that distracting smell. She grabbed her keys and her jacket and left the classroom intending on going home. She headed out of the building and down the stairs to her bike, a studio yellow Kawasaki Ninja ZX-9R. She slid the jacket on her body, and caught a whiff of the smell again. Stronger this time, triple fold then what she experienced with David.
She turned around, and she saw someone standing there, looking at her from the brick wall of the school. Wearing leather and a ski cap covering his hair. He looked like he could be one of her students, almost except he was a few years older. Against her will she headed over to him. He didn't moved, watching her approach with every step.
"Hey" she smiled a lazy smile at him
Whoever he was, he didn't speak, just continued to watch her silently
"Ya like spoonin' up with cats" she traced his face with a sensual hand before attacking him, slamming him against the wall and kissing him hotly.
*****
SEATTLE
"NON EXISTANT BROTHEL"
"Faster bitch!" the man gasped out to the woman giving him a blow job. He spasmed, but not as much as he would've liked "I said FASTER!" he kicked her in the face, which unfortunately made her bite down on his nuts.
*****
LOS ANGELOS
Finally he started to respond, rolling on top of her and kissing her neck.
She removed her jacket in an art form way and set is beside her. The wall of the school hid them from anyone's view, so no one noticed them back there.
*He was doing 8-0 on the freeway
In the 6 double O, bumpin Isley
He was gettin kinda close, kinda touch-ay
Cuz he had a little too much Hennessey
He told me that he wanna go home, with me up on the hill to my condo
Told me he would keep it all on the low-low
But I told him, "boo, I don't really know though"
He got closer to me...it started gettin deep
He had me in a zone when he started to show me things
I never saw before
Baby was smooth but I knew it was game
Hell-of-a cool but you men are the same
The way he licked his lips and touched my hips
I knew that he was slick*
Her sweater went the same way as her jacket, and she took his hands and put them on her. She didn't know who he was, just that he was giving her what she wanted. He was kissing her now, on her exposed skin, warm ones. She bit her lip and arched her back, clutching at his hair.
*You make me sick
I want you and I'm hatin it
Got me lit like a candlestick
Get too hot when you touch the tip, I'm feelin it, I gotta getta grip
And it's drivin me crazy baby don't you quit
Can't get enough of it
You got me goin again
Baby, you got me goin again
You make me sick*
*****
SEATTLE
"AHH!" he cried and yanked himself out of her mouth. He rubbed his member with one hand. "You scank!" he picked up a lamp and threw it at her. It slammed into the side of her face.
Blood dripped from it as she screamed.
"Girl shut up!" he got up and went over to her and started kicking her, "SHUT THE FUCK UP!" she eventually stopped screaming.
*Who's to blame for the lives that tragedies claim
No matter what you say
It don't take away the pain
That I feel inside, I'm tired of all the lies
Don't nobody know why
It's the blind leading the blind
I guess that's the way the story goes
Will it ever make sense
Somebody's got to know
There's got to be more to life than this
There's got to be more to everything
I thought exists*
After he left she felt someone poking at her body with a stick
"She's still alive. Hose her off and put her back with the others, and get dude to give me my money"
*We are, We are, the youth of the nation
We are, We are, the youth of the nation*
*****
LOS ANGELOS
She let got of his hair and gripped the back of his neck. Her face contorted when she felt something there. She turned and looked the mystery man in the eye.
/FLASH: "Move!" he shouted at her, picking her up and forcing her to her feet.
Jondy ran, looking back at him once more before she lost sight of him./
"Zack?" Jondy got the shock of her life when she realized who was on top of her. She threw him off of her and stood up in a rush, her breathing making her black lace bra move up and down fast.
Zack, who up until then had been 'Mystery Man' stood up. He had also gotten shirtless in their escapade.
Jondy growled and lunged him into the wall again, only this time she did it as a tactful battle move. She kicked up her foot and stuck the bottoms of her black Sketchers right at his throat "Why the fuck didn't you say anything?"
Zack grabbed her foot and shoved her backwards causing her to loose her balance. She hit the ground on her back, but rebounded a few seconds later.
"It would have helped Jondy" Zack growled back
"So you just thought fucking your little sister would be better?"
"Better me then some anonymous prick"
"Better incest then one night stands huh?" she was pissed, and kinda sick, thinking how close she came to having sex with her brother.
"I smelled you" Zack pointed out "I smelled you the same way you smelled me. When girl cats go into heat males smell it too baby sister. That's why they compete for her. But I'll bet I'm the only guy in this whole freakin' city that knows exactly what you want, and will satisfy it"
"I didn't see you winning any trophies back there Zack" Jondy spat "You think I LIKE cuming inside my brother?!? And no man knows what women want" she balled his shirt up and launched it at his head. "Stay the hell away from my personal areas!" she threw on her shirt and reached for her jacket.
"What no welcome wagon?" Zack slid on his long sleeved navy blue cotton shirt
"Bite me!" she growled, flipping him off.
This time Zack grabbed her and pinned her against the wall. "I didn't come all the way out here for this shit"
"Then I suggest you close your mouth before you bid the tides to cum"
Zack released her.
She glowered at him and beat the dirt out of her jacket. She could still smell him, but now the only thing she wanted was a freezing cold shower and get a hold of matches to burn the underwear she was wearing. "What the hell are you even doing here? Thought we would be 'compromised' if any of us met up"
"Told you I'd look out for you remember?"
"But not that you'd look in" she spat back
*We are we are, youth of the nation*
He tried to reach for her "Jondy-"
She slammed his hand down. "Shoulda said THAT before" she walked away, leaving him there.
"How long do you think it'll take before Manticore notices the set up you lied for here?"
She whirled on him "Then why the hell did you come and make it worse?" she came back over to him a little ways "Huh?"
"I came here to tell you something"
"Yeah?" she now stood face to face with him "Well fuck off Zack cause I'm still gettin' over the fact that you tried to hump me" she whirled around and started to walk away.
"I know where Max is"
This stopped Jondy dead in her tracks, she turned completely back around. "How do you know where she is if none of us are suppose to have any contact with each other? That was your game plan remember?"
"I wanted to know that she was safe Jondy."
"Sam"
"What?"
"Sam" Jondy told him "You wanna keep my cover, call me Sam" she paused "Was she safe?"
"As long as she doesn't keep screwing things up"
"Where is she?"
"Jondy" he ignored her earlier request
"Oh so you can know where she is but I can't?" she was getting more and more pissed off "She's my sister too Zack. I have a right to know. Has she contacted you?"
"I never gave her the number"
"Why the hell not?"
"She's too reckless."
"What the fuck does that mean? We're all reckless, why we broke out in the first place"
"She's exposed herself too many times Jondy. I can't risk her bringing the others down with her."
"You can't just abandon her Zack. She's our sister. We look after each other." She looked him dead in the eye "I wanna know where she is"
"I can't tell you"
"Then I'll find out another way. You're not the only one with tracking abilities remember? I'm from Manticore too."
*You cross the line and there's no turning back
Told the world how he felt
With the sound of a gat
We are, We are, the youth of the nation*
She turned again, and this time, she left.
*****
CHINA
She finally stopped to rest, her lungs felt like they were going to burst out of her chest. She leaned against an alleyway. Rats scurried around her, some drinking in the puddles. Blood still tricked down her leg from the gunshot wound. Her broken wrist throbbed painfully. She held it with her good hand, biting her lip to keep from screaming.
She smelled worse then the garbage she was leaning against. She rested a weary head against a metal trash can.
*Convinced of my deception
I've always been a fool
I fear this love reaction
Just like you said I would
A rose could never lie
About the love it brings
And I could never promise
To be any of those things*
A few tears splashed down her face. She hadn't even had time to cry. The wound was filthy. She had to shoo a rat away that had climbed on her leg. Her broken wrist throbbed incessantly. She bit her lip to keep from crying out at both pains she was experiencing. There were no stars out. The section of China she was currently in was all industrial, smog covering the sky in a gray starless haze.
*If I was not so weak
If I was not so cold
If I was not so scared of being broken
Growing old
I would be...
I would be...
I would be...*
She missed the way the stars twinkled. She hadn't seen any since moving to the city from her small village. She did what she had to do to survive with her children after the Chinese Police killed her husband in a raid. Her job as a waitress in a bar dive had wound her where she was. She didn't know, she needed the money, she did what she had to do to survive.
*If I was not so weak
If I was not so cold
If I was not so scared of being broken
Growing old
I would be...
I would be...
I would be...
...Frail*
*****
I never intended to have Jondy and Zack have a relationship. That's not how I see it. Zack was, in his own, strange way trying to "aid" her with her problem (meaning her being in heat) But she of course didn't like it. They weren't like that. I did a scene switch back and forth between LA and Seattle to parallel the two scenes.
I'm getting hungry now..but before I go, as usual.
Songs used are:
Ty and Cree talking on the phone- "Bounce With Me" (Lil' Bow Wow)
Scenes in China and Logan's penthouse - "Bring Me to Life" (Evanescence feat. Paul McCoy)
Logan and Max talking in Logan's apartment- "Candy" (Foxy Brown from "Dark Angel" Soundtrack)
Jondy's heat cycle- "You Make Me Sick" (Pink "Save the Last Dance" Soundtrack)
Scene switch from Seattle to LA "Youth of the Nation" (P.O.D)
Woman in alleyway of Bangkok at final chapter scene "Frail" (Jars of Clay)
R/R please
Peace
Mystic