This Thing Called Life

Chapter 8 - Shattered

452 dropped from the skylight and landed quietly in a crouch. She took in the dark and silent room and smiled slightly.

Now, to find Logan

She crept into the study. What she saw there made her stop cold. Logan and Charlie were hunched over the computer, staring at a recording; a recording that looked very much like the transgenic attack on White's compound.

Max began screaming inside. The sickening, horrific picture of her animalistic self in action on screen, live and in color, made Max sick to her stomach.

Charlie was shaking and crying. Mumbling quietly "Oh my god, is this what Tinga used to do?" Tinga. His dead wife, her sister. Max shuddered, knowing that it was her actions that were causing Charlie to doubt his transgenic wife once again. And nothing she could say or do would ever change it.

The images flashing on screen were appalling. She took in the battered and bruised bodies of her friends and then the final straw, the atrocity that had caused her to morph into 452: Alec, beaten and broken. Max watched in horror as her own face shut down, her eyes glazing over. Max recoiled as she saw her alter ego in action. The raw animal power, the maniacal and evil grin she had plastered on her face that grew with each kill, the tight control with which she held herself.

The intensity of her feelings caused her to break past 452, finally escaping her self-imposed prison. It had taken a split second to bring about the transformation from 452 back to Max. She gasped aloud.

Logan spun around. His eyes were dark and angry, yet his voice was shaking slightly. "What are you doing here, Max?"

Logan had tried to reach her for days without success. He had wanted to fill her in on what had transpired. But now it was all he could do to keep himself from fleeing the room in panic. The girl that stood before him just didn't equate to the slaughter he'd seen on his monitor moments before. How could they be one and the same person?

"I need some information." She stated simply, keeping a blank mask on her face so as not to betray her feelings.

"I've been looking for you." He replied, as his gaze wandered over her, trying to assess whether or not he was in danger. He kicked himself mentally for this; of course he should trust her, she'd never deliberately hurt him. But the message that came across in the video footage raised a nagging inner voice of caution and distrust.

"Obviously not hard enough." She replied tightly. Logan 's face held fear and disgust, no matter how hard he was trying to cover it up. He was different. Acting different toward her. Like she knew he would if he ever found out about what really happened with Ben. And this, the acts she had committed as 452, were so much worse. Max was beginning to accept just how different humans and transgenics really were, how their relationship could never be.

Max went on the offensive, to override the tears and pain inside. She couldn't let him see how much it was affecting her.

"Too wrapped up in your Eyes Only bullshit to tell me about my family, huh? I've always known you cared more about your crappy save-the-world shit than me and mine. I don't know why I wasted all this time on you. Alec was right all along." He opened his mouth to speak but she cut him off.

"I know they were here. I know they were taken. I know you know who did it. And now you know they're dead. I think that puts you in a pretty bad position, dontcha think? 'Cuz I'm pretty pissed off. And see, you're a liability and it would be tactically unsound to keep you alive. Especially now that I know how you really feel about me. Now that you know the truth."

Logan tried to protest. Max shot him a look of disgust.

"Oh give it up, Logan ! I can see how you're looking at me. Yeah. I did it. That's me. I went crazy and I killed all those people. And you know what? I'd do it again if I had to. No one, and I repeat, NO ONE, hurts my friends and family and gets away with it!"

Max was again battling with her instincts. Part of her was saying 'He can't be trusted. Now that he knows the real you, he might turn you in. You're a murderer in his eyes anyway.' But the other part of her, the part that was truly human, the part that had loved him once, told her to resist the urge. That killing was wrong. Unnecessary.

On the brink of sanity, she began to cave. She raised her weapon and aimed at Logan . "It's too bad it had to end like this. Sweet dreams." she said as she cocked the gun. Logan just stared in shock, mouth gaping, immobile.

Her finger was on the trigger when the gun was knocked out of her hand by a kick to her wrist.

Spinning around to face her attacker she scowled.

Alec.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" she yelled.

He threw his hands up in an apologetic gesture. "Sorry, Maxie, Couldn't let you do that. You'd end up hating yourself when you crawl out of this funk. And yours truly isn't in any condition to play punching bag."

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Logan extracting his own gun from his desk. "Oh no you don't." she growled and blurred to his side. Quickly, she slammed her elbow down on his head, knocking him out and sending the firearm flying. She turned back to Alec. But before she could say anything, Charlie spoke up, his voice quivering and pained.

"Max. Please. I heard what you told Logan . Where are they?" he pleaded with her.

Max knew instinctively that he was asking about Case. Without blinking an eye she answered in a flat, emotionless tone. "He's dead, Charlie. They're all dead."

Charlie's face went white and he fell to his knees. The pain and loss in his eyes pierced through her armor. Max's grief surged through.

The power of Charlie's anguish stretched to her and the ache she had denied since the attack on her family overtook her with such force that she collapsed. Charlie scooted over to her and they held each other in their mutual sorrow.

Oh god, they're dead! They're all dead. I've lost everyone. They're all gone. Dead. Oh god! I can't, I can't…!

She was hyperventilating. Struggling to rein in her emotions she tried to calm herself mentally.

Breathe, Max.

The pain was deep, it gutted her. Everyone she cared about was gone. She had nothing left.

I'm alone. All alone. First Jack and Eva, then Ben, Tinga, Jace. My entire family. Case. Omigod, Case! Charlie! Poor Charlie!

They clung to each other for dear life. Both had lost their families. But Max remembered something as Charlie sobbed into her hair "They're gone. All of them. Oh god." She recalled her earlier words to Alec.

'He's the only family I have left.'

Zack.


They were startled by the sound of a baby crying. Max looked at Alec and then at Charlie, stunned.

What the…?

Charlie got up in a daze. Almost mechanically, he walked from the room, returning a moment later with a small form in cradled in his arms.

Alec asked suddenly. "What's this, Logan 's secret love child? Way to go, Logie! Who'da thought he had it in him!"

Max rolled her eyes and ignored him. She scrutinized the tiny bundle and her mouth formed an 'O' as she focused on the quietly mewling child.

Little Max!

She would recognize that face anywhere. The child resembled her mother almost perfectly. Jace's little girl. Max's namesake.

"How did -"

Charlie replied in monotone. "We all came out to surprise you. It was going to be a family reunion. I was at a business meeting. I was going to meet them at your place later on. Jace and Zane took Case with them.

"They were attacked downstairs. Logan ducked the gunfire and hid. After they'd taken everyone away he found little Max. She'd been wounded in the crossfire and somehow knocked out of the way. He took her to the hospital, called me. We only just got back a few hours ago. We were in the dark about everything until you the video was delivered."

The three of them fell silent. This was all that was left of Max's family. She squeezed her eyes shut to hold back the tears and focused on the only thing left to do.

Max hurried back to Logan 's computer, painfully aware that he could come to at any moment. She needed to get the information before he found out what she was up to. She couldn't stay here any longer. There was nothing left for her here. Seattle was empty. She'd lost her friends, her family and now she'd lost Logan . There was no way he'd trust her after the stunts 452 pulled. She shuddered as she thought of how close she'd come to killing him. She recalled Alec's words from a conversation they'd had a few months back.

"We don't belong with them, Max. We're a danger to them."

Max shook her head and pulled up the file marked 'Adam'. Memorizing the information, she closed the file and stood up. She went over to Charlie, gave him a quick hug and said, "I'm so sorry, Charlie. But I can't stay here. Not any more. Take care of little Max, and tell Logan I'm sorry."

Zack was the only one left and she would find him. She could deal with her confused feelings for Alec afterwards.

She made a mad dash for the door but Alec grabbed her. "What is it with you and running, Maxie? Things get too tough so you make a break for it? Just leave us all behind. Nice to know you care."

I do care, Alec, more than you know! But I can't do this now, I have to think about Zack!

Max lashed out at Alec, knocking him hard in the side. She must have landed her kick directly on his gut wound. He howled in pain and bowled forward falling to the ground.

"Max." he croaked weakly. "I need…" he had to force the words out. "…help me."

Looking down at his face, seeing how badly she'd hurt him, all the emotion, the ache, the sadness, and loss bubbled up from within and she fell to her knees clutching at Alec.

How could I hurt Alec? I'm a monster, a killer. All I do is cause my friends pain…

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry!" She cried as she reached into her pocket for her cell and called TC. Someone would come find Alec and get him the help he needed. She couldn't face him, not now. She felt so ashamed. She had become an animal and it had begun taking over her subtly. She's shaken 452 but not completely it seemed. Max felt such acute self-hatred and self-loathing at that moment. She took one last look at Alec, seeing the anguish in his eyes.

Oh god, what have I done?

"I'm sorry, but I can't, I can't stay." She whispered frantically, sobs welling in her throat.

And she fled the apartment as tears overtook her. She collapsed in the hallway and cried. After some time, she climbed to her feet and headed downstairs.

Life would go on. It was time to make a fresh start.

TBC

Chapter 9